Different
by GuardianAngel5035
Summary: Sasuke has a...sister? What does this have to do with Team 7? Why is the ANBU involved? *Spoiler alert* I usually do not like OC's in stories. This isn't a romance or an obsession with a character. It has a plotline! PROMISE! Naruto Sakura Tsunade Shikamu
1. Chapter 1

I do not own anything…unfortunately. Enjoy, r and r please!

_**She's sitting on the edge of the gate that leads into Konohagakure. She seems to be just a young child. I can tell she hears me approaching but she doesn't move. Curious, I jump up and sit on top of the gate beside her. She doesn't look at me or even acknowledge me. I ask," Care if I join you?" She looks up at me briefly then silently nods her head. I look at her," Won't your parents be looking for you this late?" She looks up at me with a sad look in her eyes. I see her eyes start to get moist like she's about to cry. She looks away then whispers," I don't have any family." I understand now. She's one of the orphans. I tell her," Someone will still be looking for you. You wouldn't want to worry them, would you?" She mutters," I don't matter to anyone. I'm just a waste of space." I understand this feeling too. **_

_**I say," What's your name?" She answers," Kaiya, but everyone calls me Naoko." I wonder why that is. I ask her," Kaiya what?" She says," Its Naoko now, just Naoko." I smile," Well, as an upper level Shinobi and as a citizen of Konohagakure, I have to see that you get back to your home." She stands up then totters, about to fall. I reach out to catch her but it's too late. She falls off the gate then falls to the ground. She doesn't scream or cry, as most children would, she only mutters," I do that every time." I jump down beside her and offer a hand. She takes it and I carefully help her up. **_

_**She isn't like most children are around me. Somewhat scared but also amazed at the same time, to be in a close proximity to an elite ninja. She seems to be neither. Instead she is relaxed, yet still respectful in a different kind of aspect. This is something I haven't witnessed in a child of her age. As she walks beside me I carefully watch her for any signs of pain or injuries, but I can't detect any. She only seems to have a few scratches on her hands and legs, which she doesn't seem to even notice.**_

_**A few minutes later we stop in front of the orphanage. She walks to the door then turns back to look at me. She says," What is your name?" I smile, not that she would be able to see because of my mask," Hatake Kakashi." She smiles back at me," Goodbye, Kakashi-san." I say," This is only goodnight, Naoko-chan. We'll see each other again sometime." I don't know why I said that, after all I shouldn't get her hopes up about anything, but I just seem to have a feeling we will. Her expression changes to a look of knowing. "Then goodbye for now, Kakashi-san." She opens the door and walks inside, leaving me to start for my home. **_

_**Once I am home and waiting for sleep to overwhelm me, I make a decision to visit the orphanage in the morning to visit the girl. That morning I go back to the orphanage. Once I get there I inquire about Naoko, then about Kaiya. There aren't any records of a child called Naoko, but there is for Kaiya. She was adopted two days ago, except the people waited until an hour earlier this morning to come get her. I'm one hour too late. I ask where the couple lives, but the caretaker can't tell me that information on the couple's request. I leave and begin walking back home. I give up any idea of ever seeing that girl again, but can't help but wonder why she said her name was Naoko. No one at the orphanage had ever heard of a child called Naoko… **_


	2. Chapter 2

Writing this was a little confusing and chaotic. I hope I edited it correctly where everyone can understand it. If there's a concern please tell me!

My name is Sasaki Naoko. I'm a fourteen year old girl. I am average height and weight for my age with a helpful personality. My hair is black and long and my smile is bright. I was adopted when I was only seven years old for reasons that I don't really understand. I live with my adopted parents, medics, in the Sound Village. Right now it is late at night and I am sitting on my futon reading. My okasan sticks her head in my room," Naoko-chan, I told you to turn that light out." As she leaves I say," Sorry okasan." and turn out the light then lay down.

I lay in the dark for the longest time. When I am almost asleep I suddenly jump awake. I hear someone bump the door to my room. I freeze and close my eyes like I'm asleep. Someone else says," Watch where you're going!" A third voice whispers," Naruto-kun go back to the camp." Naruto yells," Hey! You said-" The voice tells him again," Go." and I hear who I assume is Naruto, leave.

The other two people walk into my room and come over to my futon. I risk cracking my eyes open and see one is a girl and the other a young man. The girl is anxious," Is it her?" The man replies," Hai." I sit up and both of them disappear. I look around but don't see them anywhere. I slip a metal blade from under my pillow and start walking towards my door. Someone grabs me from behind and covers my mouth with their hand. The girl steps out in front of me and motions to be quiet. I struggle against the man holding me. I twist to my right and get out of his grasp. I try to stab him but he is faster than me. He pulls out a kunai and our blades clash. I sense the girl coming at me also. I turn to meet her by throwing my knife at her. She dodges it then I feel the man take me in his iron grasp. This time he doesn't bother to cover my mouth. The girl whispers," Well, she isn't half bad, especially considering she hasn't had any training yet." The man changes his position to where he is still holding me but is covering my mouth, should I decide to scream. The girl motions," Be quiet and trust us." I don't try to answer since I can't talk anyway. For a moment I consider biting the man's hand then think better of it. The man slowly moves his hand and I whisper. "Fine," since I lost my only weapon.

The man let's go of me," Come on we need to hurry." The girl hesitates," But Naruto-kun is at the camp." The man looks at her," That's why we need to hurry." On the way out I grab my blade as discreetly as possible. We walk outside and the man jumps off into the branches of the forest. I say," I can't do that." The girl tells me," Here take my hand Naoko-chan." She reaches out her hand then I back up," But I don't want to leave." She grabs my hand and leaps into the branches pulling me with her. I pull my hand away and then I'm falling. I hit the ground hard but quickly look above me. The girl suddenly lands beside me. She angrily asks," What are you doing?" I look up at her," I told you, I don't want to leave."

I stand up and turn away from her running. Suddenly I'm standing still with what feels like chains around me. I grab at them then look down. They're not chains they're the man's arms. He has his arms around the tops of mine holding me still. I dig my nails into his arm but he doesn't let go. I remember my knife. I hurriedly reach into my pocket for it and try to twist around in his grip. It works! I am pressed against his chest with my weapon only inches from his neck. Suddenly I hear the sound of metal hitting metal. The man is fast too; he has gotten his kunai up to meet mine while keeping one arm still around me to where I can't back away. I notice the girl starting to come forward. The man notices this too," No, Sakura-chan." The next thing I know, I'm flat on my back on the ground with him standing over me.

I still have my knife so I throw it at him with pin point precision. I don't want to kill anyone just get away from these two. I jump up but then I can't move. I realize the man has my arms pinned behind my back and his knee in the back of my knee, too. I try to move away but he pushes his knee into the back of mine and I fall forward. He follows at the same time, landing in the same position. I end up with my legs underneath me, leaning forward with both arms behind my back. I try to move but he won't let me. I only get my nose pushed closer to the dirt.

He questions," Do you want to come with us or not?" I frown at the ground," No, I don't." He sighs," Let me rephrase that. Do you want to come with us while you're conscious or unconscious?" I complain," Just let go of me." He retorts," I wouldn't have to keep grabbing you if you didn't keep trying to run." I protest," I wouldn't have to try if you hadn't made me come in the first place." He ignores me and all three of us start back on the journey. Finally, we reach their camp and sit down to rest together. A blonde boy is dozing near three small tents. The man that helped bring me here says," Well, Naruto-kun you didn't destroy the camp." He grins," Of course I didn't." The pink haired girl rolls her eyes at him.

I ask," Who are you three?" The girl tells me," I'm Sakura-chan, that's Naruto-kun," and points at the blonde haired boy," and this is Kakashi-sensei," and points at the white haired young man. I look back to her," Where are you from?" Naruto answers," The Hidden Leaf Village, Konohagakure." Kakashi says," So Naoko-chan are you going to be cooperative?" I answer carefully," For now." Kakashi's eye narrows slightly," Naruto-kun why don't you go get us some of that tea that Sakura-chan made earlier. And Naruto-kun, only use a little powder." Naruto nods and goes into one of the tents. I inquire," Powder?" and Sakura reassures me," It's only crushed herbs." I nod and don't ask any more questions.

Naruto comes back and hands everyone a six inch tall stick of bamboo with tea inside. They all take sips then sit down the cups. I tip my cup up but keep my lips closed. I set the cup in the dirt beside me. A few moments later I slur," That tastes…not...herbs." I slouch over and listen. Kakashi is startled," Naruto-kun how much sleeping powder did you use?" He sheepishly admits," I accidentally dropped it all in her cup. I think I got most of it out though." Sakura yells," Naruto-kun you idiot! Now we'll have to wait longer for her to wake up after we get to the village!" Kakashi moves over beside me and takes my pulse. It's not irregular so he isn't worried. Naruto defends himself," I didn't mean to but at least we'll have more time." Kakashi sighs," Naruto-kun is right. We will have more time to get to the village, but we still need our rest now." Sakura and Naruto echo," Hai Kakashi-sensei," then they crawl into their tents. Kakashi piles a few logs and quickly starts a fire. He glances at me then goes into his tent. Soon they are all asleep.


	3. Chapter 3

This chapter explains a little more than the previous ones.

Once they seem to be asleep I get up. I have to get back. I walk to the edge of the trees and try to remember how Sakura jumped through the trees. I try and after the seventh time I get it.

It takes awhile but soon I'm back in my village. I silently sneak into my house then the kitchen. I get a glass of water then open the cabinet. I'm looking for sleeping powder just in case it's needed later. I find it and notice a hole in the paper. Suddenly I hear something outside and I jump. I accidentally drop it and the package falls into the glass. I quickly get it out and see some of the powder escaped. I take the package and go to the medicine room. I wrap it again so that no more powder is wasted. After putting the wrapping paper away I leave the room and close the door behind me. I come back into the kitchen and see Naruto lying on the floor. I look at the glass and see some of the water is gone. I grumble," Naruto-kun you foolish boy. Now I have to take you back and Kakashi-sensei will know I left."

I get rid of the water then rinse out the glass. Next, I put it away in the cabinet. I get Naruto up then put his arm around my neck to help support his weight. I walk outside then difficultly jump into the trees with him. About half way back to camp I jump and miss the branch. Naruto and I fall from the trees to the ground. I hit my head but ignore the pain and sit up. Naruto fell beside me so I stand then get him up too. I jump back into the branches then keep heading towards the camp. I finally reach the edge of the enclosure and see that both Kakashi and Sakura are awake.

My head begins to burn and I see that Naruto is still unconscious. I jump down and manage to keep myself and Naruto from falling over. Kakashi and Sakura run over to us. Kakashi and Sakura take Naruto and lay him down. Sakura asks," What happened?" I say," He drank sleeping powder." She looks at me," How much?" I tell her," Only one drink." Kakashi asks," Are you alright?" I nod," Hai, I'm alright," then Sakura yells," Naoko-chan! You're bleeding!" I see her staring at my temple and wonder why. I touch my fore head and feel something wet. I look at my fingers and see blood. Suddenly my head starts spinning. I start to wipe it off then I pass out. Kakashi moves quickly and catches me. He lays me down beside Naruto then walks away. He comes back with a medic kit and wraps a bandage around my head. Once he is done he puts up the kit and comes back. They move us closer to the tents and wait.

Naruto wakes up first and realizes where he is once he sees Kakashi and Sakura. Kakashi asks him," What happened?" Naruto explains," Last night I knew Naoko-chan didn't really drink the tea so I pretended to be asleep until she got up. I watched her try to jump through the branches but she couldn't do it at first. I followed her to her house and waited outside for a few minutes then crept inside. I walked into the kitchen and saw a glass of water sitting on the table. Since I was thirsty I took a drink and that's it." Sakura rolls her eyes," Naruto-kun, the water had sleeping powder in it."

I groan then blink. Slowly I sit up and glance around. Naruto yells at me," You made me drink sleeping powder!" I shoot back," You tried to make me last night!" He tells me," I was following orders!" I rub the back of my neck," I did on accident!" We both yell," You still did it!" We turn our backs to each other and Sakura asks," Will you two get along?" We both yell," No!" Kakashi shrugs," Well, it's a start."

Naruto and I get up then everyone heads towards the Konohagakure Village. Once we are right outside of the gates we stop. Kakashi gives Sakura a look that only she was supposed to notice. Sakura understands," Naruto-kun, why don't we go for a walk?" Naruto complains," But, I want to stay!" Sakura starts pulling him back into the trees until he goes willingly.

Kakashi tells me," Naoko-chan, I am your sensei now. You will be training as a ninja with Sakura-chan and Naruto-kun. Fortunately, you already went to school in your village. It is different than our school but you'll learn what the other two already know. Here, you'll need this." He hands me a strip of navy blue cloth with a piece of metal on it. I see there is a symbol engraved in the metal. "But, Kakashi-sensei I don't understand any of this. Why did you take me?" Kakashi replies," We did it to protect you. I'll explain everything once we get inside the village. You will be staying with Sakura-chan." He sees me still holding the headband. "Put it on. I know you didn't complete the academy but the Hokage ordered me to give you this." I put it around my head like Sakura's is. Naruto and Sakura come back and everyone goes to Sakura's house. Soon Kakashi and Naruto leave and I ask Sakura why they came and got me.

She flops on her bed," Let me start from the beginning. You were adopted when you were eight years old. Your adopted parents took you from Konohagakure to the Sound village and raised you. Our Hokage gave us a mission to find you because she believes that you could be in danger. Since your adopted parents are only shopkeepers and aren't ninja, she sent us to get you, train you, and to protect. No one knows who your parents were. Naoko-chan, you're the only one in your family. A little after we started the mission our former teammate, Sasuke-kun, encountered his brother. Itachi-san killed their family years before and Sasuke-kun wanted revenge. When they met, Itachi-san beat Sasuke-kun physically and mentally. Sasuke-kun left the village to seek more power from the criminal, Orochimaru-sensei. Later Sasuke-kun encountered Itachi-san again, this time Sasuke-kun killed Itachi-san. After that Sasuke-kun didn't want to come back immediately. As a deal for more training, Sasuke-kun gave Orochimaru-sensei information about you. Orochimaru-sensei thought that if he could find you before us then he could train you for himself. Luckily we found you first." I ask," Who exactly is Sasuke-kun?" Sakura digs through a drawer," Here's a photo," and hands one to me. She tells me," He was part of our group, Team Seven. He wanted more power so one day he just left. Orochimaru-sensei is still training him. Actually, you look a lot like him. " I say," You sound like you were close to him." She looks down," I was."

She asks," How did you learn to jump? I say," What," and she explains," When you went back to your village. How did you learn to jump so quickly?" I comment," I'm a quick learner. I memorized how you did it then copied it. I'm good at concentrating and focusing." After a while we finish talking then we go to sleep.


	4. Chapter 4

The next morning I wake up and see Naruto sitting on the edge of my bed and Sakura pacing back and forth. Sakura is frustrated," Where is Kakashi-sensei?" Naruto sees that I am awake," Sakura-chan she's-." Sakura continues," He should be here by now! What is taking him so long?" Naruto yells," Sakura-chan!" She stops pacing and turns around," What now?" Naruto says," She's awake." Sakura sighs," Good, now I'm going to find Kakashi-sensei. I think he's talking with the Hokage." She leaves and I ask," What happened?" Naruto tells me," Apparently she came in this morning to wake you up, but couldn't so she panicked and got me. I told Kakashi-sensei to come but, he is running late." I look at him," Wait a second. I wouldn't wake up?" Naruto nods," Hai," so I pick up the glass beside my bed and see the rim has dried powder on it. I can tell that it is sleeping powder.

Suddenly Sakura comes in pulling a guilty looking Kakashi behind her. I glare," Kakashi-sensei! You put sleeping powder in my drink!" He says," I needed to be sure you wouldn't go back to your village. It's not safe for you." I yell," I thought I could trust you!" He states," You still can." I shake my head," Not if you keep drugging me!" Naruto is puzzled," Ok, what happened?"

Kakashi elaborates," I wasn't sure that Naoko-chan wouldn't go back to her village so I gave Sakura-chan a packet of sleeping powder. I didn't tell her what it was in case she wouldn't give it to Naoko-chan. I told her to give it to her before she went to bed." Sakura turns on him," You tricked me!" I start to walk out," I'm leaving." Kakashi questions," Where are you going?" Irritated I say," Does it really matter?" He catches my arm as I try to walk out," Naoko-chan." I glare," To train," and he lets go so I walk out. Sakura silently follows me with Naruto behind her. They leave then Kakashi mutters," I suppose I have to train them."

It takes a few minutes for Kakashi to catch up to us. " We're going to be training at the river today." We change our course to the river without a comment. Once we get there we see five wooden posts sticking up out of the water. Kakashi explains to us the rules while he puts new bandages around the gash on my head. We must get from one pole to another while fighting one another and without falling off. He tells me to go to the second pole and tells Naruto to get on the first. He does and we begin. I get to the third pole when one of Naruto's kunai grazes my shoulder. I fall off into the water then drag myself onto the bank.

Next it is Naruto and Sakura's turn. I stand beside Kakashi while I wait for my next turn. I whisper," You have a good training method." Kakashi doesn't miss a beat," What's that?" I tell him," It works even if they know what you're doing or not." He stares at me for a moment," What do you think my training method is?" I explain," You ridicule and tease us." He says," Good Naoko-chan. You're very observant." I smile," And you only give compliments when you're about to do it." He chuckles," That's right." I think aloud," Except you actually meant it that time." He seems to be thinking about something, almost as if he's trying hard to piece something together. "Of course, you only told me because no one else is around." He asks," How did you come to this conclusion?" I grin," As you said, I'm observant and I can easily read others." I look up at the clouds and he follows my gaze. I jump behind Kakashi to where I am holding a kunai against his neck.

The others aren't paying us any attention because they're too focused on themselves. I continue," And I'm a fast learner." Quickly he moves to where I am in front of him then he twists my arm back to where my kunai is against my neck and I'm in a lot of pain. Kakashi whispers," True, but you still have a lot to learn." I try to ignore the pain," Hai, but even you could learn more." He says," Everyone can always learn more. It's almost you're turn." I tell him," Then release me." He chuckles again," No, you have to find a way to get out of this on your own."

I think for a moment then jump up and over Kakashi, twisting my arm even more and cutting my neck some, but I get out of the hold. Watching me Kakashi sighs," I meant without hurting yourself." I reply," You need to clarify next time." I push my hurt arm up against my torso and put pressure on the cut with the other. Kakashi walks over to me and glances at my arm then the cut. He holds out his hand," Let me see your arm and that cut." I ignore him," I'll be fine in a minute." He says," No Naoko-chan. Now, before you pass out." "Hai Sensei," and I let him see the cut and my arm.

Sakura manages to stay on her poles then it is my turn against her. Fortunately Kakashi finishes healing my arm and bandaging my cut just in time. She is on the second pole and I'm on the first. I get close enough to her on the third pole to get in a punch that knocks her off.


	5. Chapter 5

Kakashi calls us over and says that he has a mission for Naruto and me. "Naoko-chan, you and Naruto-kun will go back to your village and see if anything has changed. You have an hour to get ready." "Hai Kakashi-sensei," I say and step behind him to wait for Naruto to follow. I see the top half of map leading to my village sticking out of his pouch on his leg. Naruto asks," Aren't you going to give us a map?" Kakashi replies," You won't need one." I carefully slip out the map and urge," Come on Naruto-kun." Upset and confused Naruto follows me to his house.

I sit down and try to memorize the map. Naruto complains," I can't believe he wants us to go to your village without a map." I warn," Naruto-kun." He continues," And he expects us to get back without one too. He has gone crazy. I've only gone on that path a few times._ I_ don't have it memorized." I tell him," Naruto-kun, be quiet!" He turns around," What's that?" I state the obvious," It's a map. I swiped it from Kakashi-sensei." He asks," Why do you have it?" I explain," I'm memorizing it then putting it back before he knows it's gone." He says," But we need it!" I say," Hai, and we will have it." Naruto is worried," But if you put it back then we won't!" I sigh," Naruto-kun, weren't you listening? I said I am memorizing it. We will have it, just not on paper."

I ignore him and stand up. I walk over to a mirror and grab the first aid kit off the shelf. I take off my headband then unwrap the gauze around my head wound. I take a long strand of gauze then fold it into a small, thick square. I put it against the cut and tape it. Next, I put on my headband then unwrap my arm. Finally I'm done and he stands up too. I can tell he has given up trying to understand and we head back to the river.

Naruto tells Kakashi that we're ready to leave while I slip the map back in place. We leave by way of the branches and finally get to my village. We survey the village from the tree line," Come on." Naruto stops me," Naoko-chan! Kakashi-sensei told us to see if there was any major change with the village, not with your home!" I reply," My home is the entire village." Naruto follows me to my house and into my room. Naruto stands by my bed while I look for something in my closet. Naruto asks," What are you looking for?" I tell him," A powder, here it is." I pull out a box and Naruto watches me," No way! I am not drinking any sleeping powder!" I say," Naruto-kun, I don't want you to." I hand him a small packet and I keep the other. "This is a special powder that can cancel out sleeping powder. You take it a minute before or anytime after someone gives you sleeping powder. When you do the sleeping powder won't work." He says," That's great, but we need to get back to Konohagakure."

We leave the village and start back. Once we get halfway back we stop. Naruto complains," Can't you move any faster?" I snarl," Maybe if you took a break or paced yourself I could keep up." He replies," I thought you learned how to jump. Don't say that you can do something if you really are too weak." I yell," I am not weak!" "Then keep up!" I shove him and he falls out of the branches. I jump down after him," I am!" He stands up and glares at me. He tosses a kunai at me and it sinks into the tree beside me. I run at Naruto as he throws a kunai at me. I dodge it and manage to get close enough to twist Naruto's arm in the mid-swing of his punch. I let go then Naruto hits me hard enough in the chest that I fly backwards. At the river Sakura says," They should be back by now." Kakashi looks towards the trees," You're right. I'm going to see what's taking so long." He jumps in the trees and heads towards my village.

I try to kick Naruto, but he grabs my ankle and turns it. I hear the snap. Somehow I see the punch before he even starts to throw it. It surprises me and I don't bother to try and block the punch. He punches me in the chest sending me rocketing back. Naruto starts walking towards me after seeing that I can't walk. He surprises me and offers his hand. I stand up and lean on him. He apologizes," I lost my temper." I nod and he looks up to the branches in the distance. A moment later Kakashi drops down in front of Naruto and me.

Kakashi lands and asks," What happened to you two?" Naruto answers," We had an argument." Kakashi helps Naruto and I back to the village but this time we walk. Sakura meets us just outside the village then helps Kakashi with us.


	6. Chapter 6

Once we get to Sakura's house Kakashi tells us to sit down. We do and Kakashi gives us both a glass of tea. Naruto looks at it for a moment," Hey, there's sleeping powder in it!" Kakashi nods," I know that Naruto-kun." Naruto whines," But, Kakashi-sensei…" Kakashi warns," Naruto-kun." Naruto takes a sip and sets down his cup. Then a minute or so later he slumps over asleep. I start to whine," Kakashi-sensei…" He tells me," Naoko-chan, it will be easier to set that ankle without you screaming rather than with you." I sigh and take a drink then fall back against the chair asleep after a minute.

Kakashi and Sakura put blankets under the window before moving us. When they're done they move us to the floor, in the sunlight. Sakura gets Kakashi bandages from a medic pack then gives them to him. He wraps my ankle but won't let Sakura help him. Next he wraps Naruto's wrist then sits back down. Soon they both are asleep.

After a while both Naruto and my sleeping powder wears off, but only Naruto wakes up. He walks over and wakes up Sakura," Did you wrap my wrist?" She says," No Kakashi-sensei did it." Naruto asks," Did he wrap up Naoko-chan too?" Sakura nods then Naruto says," That surprises me." Sakura asks why and Naruto tells her," Because I didn't think Kakashi-sensei would wrap her ribs. I thought he would let you." Sakura pushes him," What are you talking about?" Naruto explains," I hit her in the chest hard enough to send her flying." Sakura hands him my cup," Give her more of this." Naruto does what he's told while Sakura gets the bandages. Once Naruto comes back Sakura tells him," Naruto-kun, drink some more." Naruto complains," But Sakura-chan, I just woke up." Sakura orders," Naruto-kun, do it." Naruto does and Sakura catches him before he hits the floor. She puts him back beside me in the warm sunlight. Sakura grabs the bandages then starts carefully wrapping up my ribs. When she's done she goes back to the table and soon falls asleep again.

I wake up the next morning in a place that I don't recognize at first. It takes me a minute to remember that I'm in Sakura's house. I sit up the take in a sharp breath and wince at the pain. I look down and see mainly white bandages. I stand up cautiously then realize that my ankle doesn't hurt as much when it is wrapped. I sit back down then I reach over and shake Naruto awake. He sees the bandages but doesn't say anything. I motion," Come on, let's get up." We both get up slowly and then wake up Kakashi and Sakura.

Once they wake up Kakashi yells," Naoko-chan, you shouldn't be up!" I sigh," It doesn't hurt, Kakashi-sensei." He ignores what I said," You could make it worse." I tell him," I don't think I will and anyway I'm willing to risk it." I go get a cup of water and then discreetly slip some of my powder in it. I take a sip then sit down. Kakashi asks," Naoko-chan, could you get the bandage. I left it beside the window." I get up and walk to the window. Out of the corner of my eye I see Kakashi slip some sleeping powder in my drink again. I grab the bandage then walk back to the table. I hand it to him then sit down and take a sip. I look back up at Kakashi and smile. Sakura asks," Kakashi-sensei why isn't she…" Naruto looks at me and smiles so that I know that he saw. Kakashi demands," Give it to me, Naoko-chan." Innocently I ask," Give you what?" He says," The powder," and holds out his hand for it.

While we're talking I slip some powder into the palm of my hand. I sigh and give the package to him. He commands," Yours too, Naruto-kun." Naruto hands his over and Kakashi gets another glass of water with sleeping powder in it. I get up and start to sneak towards the door. Kakashi tells me," Sit down, Naoko-chan." I say," Sorry Sensei, but I can't." I bolt outside and jump onto the roof. I wince at the impact but don't yell out. Kakashi, Sakura, and Naruto run outside then start looking for me. Naruto jumps on the roof," Here-." I pull him down beside me. I tell him," Naruto-kun, you can train today, but I'll need another day to heal and besides I need to do a few things. When you leave to go train leave your headband. Tell Kakashi-sensei you forgot it and come back to the house. Come over to the window and rub my hand over the edge of my glass then make me drink it." He nods his head yes then stands up pulling me with him. He says," Here she is!" We jump down, Naruto taking most of my weight, and then Kakashi pushes me inside and makes me sit down.

I say," Kakashi-sensei, I can train, please?" He says," You should have thought about that before you ran again. Now I might have to take you to Tsunade-sama." He squats down and checks my ankle then ribs. I wince when gentle hands touch bruised ribs. Sakura gets my glass and Kakashi makes me drink it. I fall over asleep and Kakashi hands Sakura the glass. Sakura moves me back under the window. Kakashi and Sakura leave with Naruto-kun right behind them after he takes off his headband.

A few minutes later he informs the others," Kakashi-sensei, I forgot my headband." Kakashi-sensei tells him to go get it. Naruto comes back and puts his band back on. He walks over to the window after grabbing the glass. He rubs my hand over the rim the makes me drink some. A moment later I wake up again. I tell Naruto thanks and he leaves once more then I head towards my village.


	7. Chapter 7

Sorry this chapter is so short!

I sneak into my house then into my room. I lift up the corner of my mattress and grab a folded up paper. I unfold it all the different ways and pull out a necklace. I take off my headband and hold it beside my necklace. I look at the symbol on my necklace and on my headband. I see that they're both exactly the same. I had it when I was put in the orphanage. I didn't take it off for a long time, until some of the other kids started causing me trouble. Then I took it off and hid it. I put the necklace on then also put my headband back on. I sit on the edge of my bed silently thinking about all the memories of the orphanage. I remember the one elite Shinobi who found me that one night on top of the gate. I remember almost everything that night. The knowing that we wouldn't ever see each other again. The compassion and automatic protectiveness in his voice and posture. I remember everything…except his name…and what he looked like. I try to recall those details, but every time I almost have them, they slip further away. I give up but promise myself to try to remember later, when I have time to.

Next, I start back to my new home, the Konohagakure village. I hurry back to Sakura's house and fortunately for me they're not back yet. I look at the clock and see that my powder won't keep me up unless I take more. I go get a new glass of water after getting rid of the other. I put a little bit of sleeping powder in it then sit down by the window. I take a sip then quickly lie the glass down before I let the blackness overcome me.

The others come back a while later but only Naruto knows what really went on. After Kakashi and Naruto leave Sakura wakes me up," I want you to meet some people around the village." I agree," Ok, let's go." She asks," Are you sure you don't need some help?" I tell her," I feel fine, it just looks bad." We leave and go to Konoha's Cookie Shop. Sakura introduces me to Choji and we both get a cookie. Next she takes me to meet Shikamaru. We find him at the river watching the clouds. Later we go visit Neji and Hinata. Last of all we go see Kiba. When we are done we go back to Sakura's house and go to bed.

The next morning everyone goes to train. We train until late that night when Kakashi finally lets us go home. Naruto walks Sakura and I home at Kakashi's request.


	8. Chapter 8

Many days later, I visit the schoolyard where I should have gone. The classes just began again last month. The new students are mostly already inside but a few are lingering. I notice three boys near the wall and walk towards them. There is an older boy with them and I think I recognize him. I stop when I see Neji exit the academy building. He nods as he brushes past me. I turn my attention back to the boys. They have a short piece of trip wire with a paper fastened to one end. I see the older boy hand it to the younger two. He looks up and I can see his face clearly. Black hair and eyes like mine. Uchiha eyes. As I take a step forward I read the symbol Baku on the tag. I yell at them that it is an exploding tag. I hear Neji stop walking as the boys jump up. The wire and tag float to the ground as the tag starts to burn. A second later the explosion happens. I scream," Sasuke-chan," then the explosion hits us directly.

After the smoke begins to clear teachers begin streaming into the schoolyard. A few minutes later other villagers and ninja arrive. Soon almost everyone except for Neji and I have been found. The helpers take everyone else to the hospital. Kakashi and Shikamaru are just two of the people still searching for us.

It's hard for me to breath in this dust or I would yell for help. I can see a tiny bit of light in-between some of the rocks and wood. Shikamaru yells," I found Neji-kun!" I hear a few others scramble over and help him move away the rubble. Shikamaru helps Neji stand up then gets him onto a stretcher. Two helpers take him on to the hospital while Shikamaru helps Kakashi look for me.

Suddenly I am blinded and being lifted up out of the debris. I can't get a good look at my rescuer but I see a flash of white hair. I smile, it's Kakashi. Kakashi hollers at Shikamaru," Come help me!" I am out of the dust but it's still hard for me to breath. I'm staring up at the mid-day sky but can still hear them both moving across the debris to get to each other. I feel myself being laid down then hear Shikamaru mutter," That's a lot of blood." Kakashi tells him," Get more bandages and a syringe!" He jumps up and runs to the nearest medic ninja. Kakashi tears my shirt and I start to feel something warm and sticky run down my side.

Shikamaru suddenly appears again this time kneeling over me. He's watching my face. A medic-nin hands him something then he shines a bright light in my eyes. The light disappears and Kakashi tells someone to help lift me up a little. Shikamaru is still focusing his attention on me. I feel someone begin to lift me and wrap my abdomen then I feel the pain. I immediately try to push away Kakashi thinking it'll stop. The moment my hand moves towards him, Shikamaru grabs it. I shut my eyes tight against the pain of him holding down my arms, but it doesn't come. Instead he holds my hand just as tight as I'm squeezing his. This still doesn't do anything for the pain. It burns all through my chest and doesn't stop. I force myself to keep my mouth closed. I don't want to scream. I feel someone stick my arm with something. A moment later I can feel my body start to go numb. My vision begins to blur and I'm almost unconscious. Two people come over with a stretcher and then Shikamaru and Kakashi put me on it. I see Shikamaru's face and can tell I'm not in good shape.

There's just one thing I want to say before they leave. I mumble," Sakura-chan?" Kakashi hears me and says," She's already at the hospital. So is Naruto-kun. I sent people to tell them." I mumble," It hurts." He says," It'll fade, now sleep." The pain is suddenly gone completely. I smile sleepily," Hai." I feel myself lose my grip on Shikamaru's hand as my arm falls and a moment later I drift off.


	9. Chapter 9

Two days later I wake up in a hospital room. I wake up to voices in an argument. One is a man's while the other is a woman's. I try to listen to the conversation but everything is still a little fuzzy. The woman says," But you said that you had your hands full with just those two." The man says," I know what I said but now I can handle all three of them." The woman asks," I told you this probably wouldn't be permanent…what changed your mind?" The man says," When she smiled at me while she was bleeding to death." The woman says," That would do it." The man says," She's part of the team now, Tsunade-sama." The woman says," Alright, I'll make sure she stays with Team 7." I hear the woman walk out the door and the man sit on the bed beside mine.

Things begin to get clearer then I can open my eyes. At first my vision is blurry then it gets clear and sharp. I see the man is Kakashi. Of course he is reading. It looks like 'Make out Paradise' again. He looks up at me then asks," So you're finally awake?" I say," Hai, I am." He smiles but it quickly fades. I ask," How bad am I?" He says," You lost a lot of blood so they had to give you a few transfusions and you landed on sharp rock. It went between your second and third ribs." I wince just at the thought.

I ask," So, how long was I asleep." He says," Well, you were unconscious for two days." I sit up straight and say," Two days!" I gasp at the pain from the misplaced ribs. He gently pushes me back down and I don't argue. He says," Hai, and I need you to talk to Naruto-kun." I say," About what?" He says," He won't stop worrying about you. He can't concentrate on his training." I say," What do you mean 'can't concentrate'?" Kakashi says," I can throw my kunai and he'll either block it too early or forget to block it at all." I say," Kakashi-sensei, I don't want him training again until he sees me." He says," That makes three of us but he won't listen to reason." I say," Something tells me you never thought he would." He says," Naruto-kun will be Naruto-kun." I ask," When can I leave?" He says," Tomorrow morning. The Hokage, Tsunade-sama, healed you so your ribs are only bruised." I say," They feel broken but I believe you." He says," I need to get back to Naruto-kun and Sakura-chan." I say," Could you ask them to stop by later?" He says," Sure thing, Naoko-chan," and leaves."

A few minutes later I hear someone open the door and sit down beside me. I wait and see it is Shikamaru. I say," Hi Shikamaru-kun, what are you doing here?" He says," I've been wanting to talk to you, but you've been asleep for a while." I ask," I know I took a pretty long nap, longer than I liked. So what do you need to talk about?" He says," Well, why did you yell Sasuke-kun's name that day at the academy?" I don't answer his question, wondering if I should tell him. I really don't want to get into this discussion. He says," You knew him, didn't you?" I say," Hai, I did." He asks me how. I say," Shikamaru-kun…Sasuke-kun is…my brother." Shikamaru says," That's not possible. Itachi-san killed the rest of his family except for Sasuke-kun." I say," I was in the woods when Itachi-san did that. I had wandered off. Later Sasuke-kun found me and he took me to the orphanage." He says," Does Sasuke-kun know you're in the village?" I say," No he doesn't know I'm here. He didn't even recognize me at the academy." Shikamaru says," He wasn't looking for you. That's why he didn't recognize you." I say," I guess so, but I still want to know why he just left me on the doorstep of the orphanage." He says," Wait, didn't you say your parents left you?" I say," The caretaker just told me that because she didn't know who left me." He says," Thanks for telling me Naoko-chan. I hope I can help you find your answers." I say," Thanks for listening." We say goodbye and he goes home.

Before I can doze back of Tsunade-sama comes in. She says," You asked to talk with me Naoko-chan?" I say," Hai, I would like to join the ANBU Black ops." She is surprised and asks," Why is that?" I say," I want to do more than just helping people on missions." She asks," Why else?" I say," It feels like it's my duty. I haven't been in my village since I was adopted. I want to make up for all those years. I'm fifteen now." She smiles then says," I'll see about getting you started on becoming an ANBU Black op." I say," Thank you, Hokage." She says," It's not a problem Naoko-chan."

She leaves and I doze back off then get woken up later by Naruto and Sakura. We talk for a while then Sakura leaves. I try to convince Naruto that I'm fine and that he needs to concentrate in his training. After that he leaves too and I try to make myself fall asleep. For some reason I can't so I carefully get up. After a few gasps and my head spinning some I walk over to my window. I think the pain killers are wearing off.

It's open and I stare out at the stars. Suddenly I know what I need to do. I have to find Sasuke. I turn around and walk out the door. I glance both ways down the hall before making an unsteady dash for the exit. I pause to look down another hall before opening the door. I run straight into a wall but it reaches out and grabs me. I ran into Kakashi.

I hear the door shut with a metallic 'click'. Kakashi lets go then notices it's me. I say," Umm, I was…sleep walking?" He says," You have to spend the entire night here, Naoko-chan." I say," Sure, just let me leave for a few minutes then I'll be right back." Kakashi opens my hospital room door for me and waits. I start to take a step away and something snags the back of my shirt. It pulls me to a stop but I catch my breath because of the pain. Kakashi says," Other direction, Naoko-chan." I sigh then turn around and walk back inside with Kakashi following.

Once we get back to my room I sit on the side of the bed. I ask," Are you going to tell Tsunade-sama about this?" He says," I don't see any reason to, unless…" I ask," Unless what?" He says," Unless, you try it again." I say," Don't worry yourself. That definitely isn't going to happen tonight." I put a hand on my ribs and wince at the shooting pain. He asks," Aren't you going to sleep?" I say," I'm not tired anymore." He smiles then says," Alright, but I'll be close by." He walks out and I know he'll be waiting for another escape attempt. Instead I lie down and try again to fall asleep but this time I am successful. Just before I drift off I think I see a flash of white outside my window, then a face.


	10. Chapter 10

The next morning Kakashi walks in while I am looking out the window. From the window I can see the roofs of the Sound village. He asks," Ready to leave, or have you changed your mind since last night?" I see him grin underneath his mask. I say," No I haven't." He says," Alright, but you'll need to take this first." He hands me a small pill. I look at it for a moment then hand it back to him. I say," No thanks, I'd rather stay conscious from now on." He says," Naoko-chan, you wince every time you move. You need to take it." I say," I can handle the pain of the trip." He threatens," Tsunade-sama told me to hold you down if I have to." I say," Alright, then I guess I'm not leaving." Kakashi says," You have to leave because Tsunade-sama needs this room." I say," Then forget about the pill." I sit on the bed and pull my legs up against my body.

He says," It's either this or a needle." I say," That's a simple choice, neither." He hands the pill back to me and says," Take it. Now." I hand it back and say," I'm not in pain, Sensei." He leaves the room then comes back after a few short moments. He still has the pill in one hand but now also has a needle in the other. He stands beside me then says," Chose." I say," I already told you my choice."

I turn away from him to look back out the window. I feel Kakashi wrap an arm around me, yet another time. I know this is one argument I won't be winning. I let him turn over my arm without any resistance, knowing that it would be useless. I feel the needle prick the skin at the crease of my elbow. I continue watching out the window until my eyes close without my permission. A moment later I am asleep.

Kakashi picks me up and carries me outside. Unknown to me, he avoids the roads and villagers by taking the rooftops. Once we're almost to Sakura's house he stops in a small panic. I mumble something then move my arm to cover my ribs and wince in my sleep. He waits to make sure I'm not awake. He sees that I'm not then realizes that the pain medicine must be wearing off. He gets a firmer hold on me then continues.

Finally, a minute later he reaches Sakura's house. He manages to knock and Sakura lets him in. Sakura takes me and lies me down on my futon in a guest room. They both sit and wait for me to wake up.

It's the night on top of the gate again. I've never stopped dreaming of it since I went back to my village. But this time it's somehow different. The man is sitting beside me, but this time I can see everything clearly, except for his face. I wait for him to say his name, but like every other time I can't hear him say it.

I let the dream play out wondering if his face will get clearer. Finally it gets to the part at the orphanage doorstep. I start to walk inside then realize I can ask him what his name is. I turn around and start to say something, but he's gone. In his place is Itachi with Sasuke's body in his arms, blood still dripping form the corner of his mouth. I hear Sasuke say," Kaiya-chan…I'm sorry…I meant to come back." Itachi smiles and lays down Sasuke's now dead body on the ground. He pulls out a kunai blade and walks towards me. He stops once he is towering above me holding his kunai, ready to attack. He brings his blade down towards me with blinding fast speed. I close my eyes and scream.

Suddenly I'm awake and covered in a cold sweat. Kakashi is hovering over me looking worried and anxious. I take a few deep breaths trying to calm myself. Kakashi asks," Naoko-chan, are you alright?" I stand up, feeling the pain of my ribs but ignoring it. Almost crying I say," I'm sorry Kakashi-sensei. I have to go. I have to find him, before it's too late." I start for the door but Kakashi stops me. He grabs my arm and turns me around. I fight him, but I'm still weak and half asleep. He pulls me against him, whether trying to stop my feeble punches or to comfort me, I don't know.

I stop fighting him and just focus on trying not to cry. I try one last time to pull away, to run, but he stops my by putting his arms around me. Both trying to comfort and keep me from leaving. I shudder at the thought that my dream might become a reality. He slowly lets go, treating me as he would a frightened animal, making me sit down at the table. He squats down in front of me so that we're eye to eye. He asks," What's wrong Naoko-chan?"

I feel a single tear fall from my eye and run slowly down my cheek. I look away from him and see outside the window. It's already early morning. I whisper," My brother…" Kakashi says," You're brother? Naoko-chan, you don't have any family." That last sentence clears everything except for right now and the night on the gate out of my head. I remember it all perfectly now.


	11. Chapter 11

_**I stop running now, just walking slowly. I don't know where I'm going, but that doesn't matter much. Finally I reach the gate that leads out of Konohagakure. I stop, knowing I shouldn't leave the village. Instead I climb up to the top of the gate and sit down, just wanting to think. **_

_**A few minutes later I hear someone walking up the road behind me. I don't pay any attention to them, thinking they won't see me or just won't care. I hear the footsteps stop then the person lands on the gate beside me. I don't look up to see who it is. They ask," Care if I join you?" It's a man's voice, but I don't recognize it. I glance up at him and see he is an upper level Shinobi by the clothes he wears. I nod my head at his question, not feeling like saying anything.**_

_**He asks me," Won't your parents be looking for you this late?" I feel my eyes start to get wet and I know I'm about to cry. I look away concentrating on not letting the tears fall. I whisper," I don't have a family." He pauses then says," Someone will be looking for you. You wouldn't want to worry them, would you?" I say," I don't matter to anyone. I'm just a waste of space." Softly he asks," What's your name?" I say," Kaiya, but everyone calls me Naoko." He ponders that for a short moment then asks," Kaiya what?" I say," Its Naoko now, just Naoko." He says," Well, as an upper level Shinobi and as a citizen of Konohagakure, I have to see that you get back to your home." **_

_**I stand up then start to lose my balance. I start to fall like every other time. I see the man reach out to help me but it's too late. I hit the ground and mutter to myself," I do that every time." The man jumps down and offers his hand to help me up. I take it then we start back towards the orphanage.**_

_**I see him looking me over, probably to see if I'm hurt. A few minutes later we are at the orphanage. I walk up to the door then turn back to him. I ask," What's your name?" I see him smile underneath his mask. He says," Hatake Kakashi." I smile then say," Goodbye Kakashi-san." He says," This is only Goodnight, Naoko-chan. We'll see each other again sometime." **_

_**I remember that I have to leave the village tomorrow. I know that we won't ever see each other again, but there's no use telling him that. I say," Then goodbye for now, Kakashi-san." I open the door and walk inside the orphanage for my last night in Konohagakure.**_

The man was Kakashi. I remember it all now. Worried Kakashi asks me," Naoko-chan what's wrong?" I smile then look up at him. I realize that my dream was just that, a dream. Sasuke isn't in any danger from Itachi now. I say," Nothing is wrong Kakashi-sensei." He asks," Then why are you crying?" I say," I'm crying because I'm happy. I remember that night seven years ago...on the gate."

I don't expect him to remember and I can tell he only remembers a small bit of it. I whisper," I'm Kaiya..." He looks up at me with a surprised expression. He whispers," Kaiya-chan? It can't be you." I say," I never got to tell you thank you for that night." He smiles then says," It is you." I say," Well, of course it is Kakashi-sensei." He asks," Why did you say your name was Naoko-chan, though? I asked at the orphanage the next morning, for you but no one knew you as Naoko-chan." I say," When I was left at the orphanage, I had a letter I was supposed to give to the caretaker. It said that my real name was Kaiya and I was eight years old. Underneath that it also said that I was to be renamed Naoko. The caretaker never read past my real name and age. I only know this because I found the letter in the trash and later asked the caretaker." Kakashi asks," But who left you at the orphanage?" I say," The caretaker never told me because she forgot and…I don't remember."

Kakashi says," Do you want to tell the others?" I say," I don't want anyone else to know." He says," Alright but I meant to tell you this right when you woke up, but you…distracted me. You can start training again today." I say," That's great Kakashi-sensei." He says," You do know that this won't change the way I treat you?" Teasing I say," Hai, Sensei." He says," Also, tomorrow either you three or Team 10 might be assigned another mission. But first you'll need a lesson about your chakras." I say," Let me guess, only I have to do this?" He smiles then says," Correct. Naruto-kun, Sakura-chan and…Sasuke-kun already did it."

I say," So what is this mission about?" He chuckles then says," The Hokage hasn't told me and I haven't asked." I get up and he does too. He tells me to go find Sakura and Naruto. I do what he says and the three of us run around the village. We end up stopping down by the river.

After wadding in the water Kakashi surprises us. He appears downstream and walks up toward us. By the time Kakashi reaches us we're standing together on the bank. Kakashi turns to Sakura and Naruto. He says," I will only be teaching Naoko-chan this. You two have already learned it. You can go back to the village." Naruto and Sakura understand Kakashi wants to do this lesson without an audience. They both head back to town, leaving Kakashi and I alone.


	12. Chapter 12

Kakashi starts off into the forest again, but in a different direction. I follow until he finally stops suddenly in front of me. I wait for him to explain what he wants me to do. After a moment he does. He says," Do you remember what chakra is?" I say," Hai, of course." He explains everything and asks a few more questions. Finally he ends with saying," The point of this exercise is to get the exact right balance of chakra. You want to focus all of your chakra on the soles of your feet. The goal is to climb this tree without using your hands. You want to make a higher mark in the bark each time, with this kunai. I don't expect you to get to the top on your first time." He throws one of his kunai at my feet and I pick it up. He walks to the base of another tree and sits down then pulls out 'Make out Paradise' again.

I do just as he told me and focus on pulling my chakra into the soles of my feet. I wait until I think I have the right balance of mental energy and physical energy. I take a running leap at the tree. I hit the tree and make a mark as high as I can reach. I land back on the ground in front of the base of the tree. So that's what he meant by balance your chakra. If you hit too hard the surface repels you but if you don't hit hard enough you fall. I focus and try it again this time I make a mark much higher up. I let myself fall back to the ground twisting into a crouch to take the force of the impact. My side still isn't completely healed.

Out of the corner of my eye I see Kakashi watching me over the top of his book. I ignore my single audience and try again. This time I can tell I have the perfect amount of both before my feet even leave the ground. I leap up and hit the trunk. I make myself focus and run up the tree at the same time. Finally I stop and grab a branch pulling myself onto it. I sit on the branch then look back down and see Kakashi grinning and clapping. He says," Very good." I stand up on the branch, ready to make my decent.

Suddenly, I'm falling. The ground is coming up fast and I don't think, I just act. I pull out my kunai blade and stab the next branch that starts to fly past. It stops me and I pull myself onto the branch. I look the rest of the way down and see Kakashi has abandoned his book but isn't anywhere in sight. Suddenly he is right there! He is standing over me on the same branch. He surprises me enough that I fall off that branch too. I feel my body falling again towards the ground then something yanks hard on my wrist.

My free fall is over thanks to Kakashi. He is holding my wrist tightly to keep me from falling a third time. Kakashi pulls me back onto the branch beside him again. I chuckle nervously then say," Well, I've never been good when it comes to heights." Kakashi laughs slightly but it's filled with relief. We make our way back to the ground, but he never lets go of my wrist until both my feet are safely planted.

I collapse, flat on my back in the dirt, exhausted and he sits beside me. He asks," Tired already," then laughs at my expression. I say," Having your heart stop two different times in less than a minute takes a lot out of a person." He says," In a fight you won't have time to rest." I say," I know that, besides in a fight I won't even be able to think, just react." He says," That's true." He looks up through the canopy of leaves to the sunset. I follow his gaze.

He says," It's about time we get back to the village. I stand up then turn around and offer my hand. Somewhat surprised he takes it and we start back to the village. Before we leave he grabs his book then walk through the wall of trees with me following. He walks with me to Sakura's house to ensure I don't leave on any 'missions' of my own. At the door I stop and say," Goodbye Kakashi-sensei." He smiles then says," But this is only goodnight." I laugh then say," Then goodnight, Hatake Kakashi." I walk inside and he walks home.

Sakura is already asleep and I know exactly what I need to do. I grab two pieces of paper and a pencil. I silently go to the table beside the window so I can write in the moonlight. On the first I write," I have to do this before it's too late. I've considered my choices and I realized this is my only choice. I know you trust me to come back and I'll try my hardest to. I'm truly sorry for doing this to you three. So sorry, Naoko." I take the first note and carefully sneak into Sakura's room then place it on her pillow. I go back to the table by the window.

I start writing the other note and I am done fairly quickly. I put up the pencil and make sure I have everything I'll need. I quietly open the door and race into the black night. I stay in the shadows of the buildings until I reach my destination. I creep up to the always open window. I look inside and see he is sleeping soundly. I pull myself up onto the windowsill. I slowly and carefully put the second and last note on the blanket beside his hand.

I jump down and head towards where I used to live before I went to the orphanage. It's my old home. The place where my parents were killed, where one brother sealed his fate, and where the other swore vengeance.


	13. Chapter 13

I walk past the other homes up to the old abandoned house. I know that if I do find Sasuke then I must be able to prove that I'm Kaiya. I walk into Sasuke's old bedroom and stand in the far corner. I take three steps forward and five to the right. I squat down and look at the floor. I carefully pry a floorboard off to reveal the secret compartment below. I brush around the dust trying to find what I'm looking for. Finally I feel the cold, hard feel of metal. I pick it up by the string and dust it the rest of the way off. It's the other half to my necklace. I turn over the small gray circle that has a rectangle at the top. It looks the same as the one on the back of Sasuke's shirt in Sakura's picture. Our clan's symbol. I see where it has a small engraving on the back. I take off my necklace and hold my symbol against his, directly in the engraving. It fits perfectly into it. I let go and they fall apart.

I put mine, then Sasuke's symbols around my neck. I stand up and walk back outside, but instead of walking through down the road I stop and take another path. This path is almost entirely gone, but I still know it's there. This is the path that Sasuke found me on seven years ago. When he took me to the orphanage, I watched him leave me. He went back to towards our house instead of straight out of the village. I waited on the doorstep for hours thinking he might come back, but he never did.

The only way to get from our house out of the village was the road that leads by the orphanage. He couldn't have left, unless he used this path. I know that after he dealt with his grief he came back to find me. But I was already adopted by that time and he couldn't find out where I had been taken.

I decide that I'll try the path first. If I'm not right I can always come back and follow the main road later. I feel the warm sunshine hit me and I look up at the sky. Kakashi and the others should be getting up in about an hour and Team 10 should be back in half that time. I realize I need to hurry unless I want to get a surprise visit from Shikamaru and his Shadow Jutsu. I start running trying to stay in what's left of the shadows. I finally stop running about a mile outside of Konohagakure.

I hear other people running close by, almost in front of me. I jump into the branches fast. I see Team 10 running back towards the village. I whistle the same way Shikamaru always does. I see him freeze and the others stop then double back to him. I can faintly hear them asking him what's wrong. He makes an excuse and I watch them run to the village leaving him behind.

I wait a moment then say," It's a good thing you know your own whistle." I jump down in front of him and he asks," What's going on?" I say," When you get back to the village go find Kakashi-sensei for me, he'll want to talk to you." I start to run, knowing if I wait he won't let me.

Suddenly something brings me to a halt. I feel myself turn around to face Shikamaru. I momentarily forgot about his Shadow Jutsu. He says," Naoko-chan what's going on?" I say," Naruto-kun ran off, I've been looking for him." He asks," Then why does Kakashi-sensei want to talk to me?" I say," I told him I would send you back with an update on how my search was going." I can tell he doesn't believe me but he releases me from his jutsu. I say," Thanks Shikamaru-kun, but I need to keep looking." He says," One last thing, promise you'll be back?"

I have to turn around so that my face won't give me away if my voice doesn't. I hate lying to him. I say," I…I'll try to." I run away before I can start crying or he stops me.

I run endlessly until I realize I don't know what I'm even looking for. I stop and just walk for a few more miles. I can feel someone watching me. I freeze and search around me for someone. I hear a twig snap and hurl myself upwards, into the safety of the trees. I look down around me watching, waiting. I hear a boy's voice say," I wasn't expecting to see you again."

I know who it is now and I answer as calmly as possible. I say," Hello, Sasuke-kun." He says," We really must talk." I say," Hai, we need to." He walks out of the trees below me and I jump down too. He pauses, waiting for me to start talking. I comply by saying," How can you not realize what's in front of you?" Puzzled he says," What do you mean?" I say," So you've been blinded by this task for revenge that you can't even recognize your little sister?"

Confused and trying not to hope he asks," Kaiya-chan?" I smile," When you left Team 7, they needed another member and I needed to be protected. Team 7 came to rescue me and Tsunade-sama let me stay with them in your place. One Uchiha for another." He is speechless. Finally he manages to get out," But how?" I say," To everyone that knows me, I'm Naoko…except to you." He says," That's impossible, my little sister was adopted!"

I say," I was taken to the Sound village and raised there. Until Tsunade-sama heard word that Orochimaru-sensei was searching for me. Then she sent Team 7 to escort me to Konohagakure. You wouldn't know anything about that would you?" He says," Pain-san found out and told Orochimaru-sensei. Fortunately, he doesn't know you're my sister. They wouldn't tell me where you were, thinking I might go looking for you. But I knew the Hokage would know where you were taken, so I sent word that I had heard assassins were searching for you. I wanted to keep you safe."

I say," So do you believe me now?" He says," Maybe." I say," What if I had this?" I hold up the necklace I took from his bedroom earlier. He stares at it until I take mine off, too. I press mine into the back of his symbol and hold them out to him. He walks over and takes them. He says," Kaiya-chan, it is you." I smile then say," In your search for revenge, you seem to have forgotten the promise." He recites," These two signs represent, a brother and a sister, to show that no matter how far apart, their hearts will never be separated." I say," It looks like you just proved me wrong." For the first time in a long time he smiles and says," Just like when we were little." I say," Hey! I won some of those arguments!" It's exactly like we're little kids, playing together again.


	14. Chapter 14

Back at Konohagakure, Sakura is running with Naruto to Kakashi's house. They burst through the door running to Kakashi's bedroom, yelling the entire way. Suddenly Kakashi is in the doorway. Sakura runs straight into him and Naruto into her. Kakashi catches them both before they fall over. Sakura leans against the wall, trying to catch her breath.

Kakashi speaks first," What's going on?" Sakura hands him the note. Naruto falls back onto the floor, exhausted from the long run. Kakashi reads the note and thinks to check for another one. Sakura and Naruto stay put as Kakashi goes back into his room. The first thing he sees is the note on his bed. He walks over and picks it up and reads it.

It says," I'm sorry, Kakashi-sensei. I swear to you I'll come home, with or without my brother. I know you don't understand this so I'll explain through a friend. Go find Shikamaru and ask him. He should already be looking for you. Still Sorry, Naoko/ Kaiya. P.S. Don't send Sakura or Naruto to look for me…I don't want them getting hurt."

He goes back to Sakura and Naruto. He knows I'll be far away by now. He tells them," Go look for Naoko-chan in the woods around the village, but don't go anymore than a few miles away." Naruto asks," Where are you going?" Kakashi says," To get my answers." He walks out towards the gate to find Shikamaru and Sakura and Naruto head for the woods, as they were told.

Shikamaru is running as fast as he can through the forest. He's gone about another mile so he stops. He pulls out a kunai and makes a mark in the bark of another tree. He's been doing this since the spot where I left him. He's running to find Kakashi but also leaving an obvious trail for him to find. He starts up running again.

A few minutes later he finally reaches the entrance to Konoha. He doesn't stop running until something stops him. He spots Kakashi running towards the gate and him. He stops and waits for Kakashi to reach him. When Kakashi does reach him, Shikamaru says," I just saw Naoko-chan." Kakashi asks," Where?" Shikamaru says," About nine miles into the forest."

Kakashi decides that instead of running to find me he needs to first understand what's going on. He says," Naoko-chan started talking about a brother. Do you know anything about that?" Shikamaru says," Um, hai. She does have a brother. Well, actually…she has two. But she only wants to find one." Kakashi asks," I thought she was an orphan. Who are her brothers, who is she looking for?" Shikamaru sighs then says," Her parents were murdered when she was eight, by her brother. That brother abandoned the village after he committed the crime. Her younger brother found her and took her to the orphanage. Any of this sounding familiar?"

Kakashi says," Uchiha…she's of the Uchiha clan. Sasuke-kun and Itachi-san are her brothers. But who is she looking for? Itachi-san is…" Shikamaru says," Sasuke-kun. She wants answers from him and she wants her brother back." Kakashi says," But Orochimaru-sensei won't let him just leave." Shikamaru says," I think she knows that. She doesn't expect him to come back with her but she at least wants to see him again." Kakashi says," But if he doesn't believe she is his sister, then Sasuke-kun will kill her!" Shikamaru says," He won't believe Naoko-chan is his sister but he will believe Kaiya-chan is." Kakashi says," If he doesn't believe her then she can't win against him!"

He starts to take off running but Shikamaru stops him with his Shadow Jutsu. He makes Kakashi turn to face him again then says," Wait! You'll want to know, I left you a trail. It leads back to the place where Naoko-chan stopped me. From there she kept going north. I hope that helps you." He stops his jutsu and Kakashi says," Thank you, Shikamaru-kun. It does." He takes off into the woods following Shikamaru's trail, while Shikamaru goes to find his team.

The trees are almost just green and brown blurs around Kakashi. He is running as fast as he can towards where Shikamaru last saw me. Finally he reaches a tree with two slashes in the bark. This must be the spot. He turns a little more to the north and takes off again.

Sakura and Naruto are talking to each other and wondering. Naruto asks," Why would she just leave though, I mean it's not like she has anywhere to go?" Sakura says," Naruto-kun, I don't have any more of an idea than you do." Naruto says," Well, we've been searching for about two hours now. I don't think she's anywhere near us." Sakura says," I don't think we're going to find her." Naruto says," Let's look a little longer." Sakura says," It's worth a try."


	15. Chapter 15

Sasuke pauses a foot away from me. Then hesitantly takes a step forward and puts his arms around me. He says," I've missed you imouto." I say," I've missed you too." He pulls away and I do the same. I say," Shikamaru-kun will have told Kakashi-sensei about me already." Sasuke says," Then he'll be looking for you." I say," He knows that you're my brother. That my real name is Kaiya. After you left the village but before I left, he found me one night when I was thinking about running away. He stopped me." He looks surprised for a moment then says," I should have known you would have tried to run." I say," What can I say, I take after you."

Suddenly he is right there beside me with a kunai blade out. I say," Sasuke-kun, what-," he cuts me off by whispering," Shh! It's Orochimaru-sensei. I'm sorry about this Naoko-chan." He is looking all around us and I start searching too. Suddenly a chilling voice says," So this is Naoko-chan." I sense something coming at me from behind. I jump from behind Sasuke to where I am beside him with a kunai out. I hear a shuriken hit a tree. I am crouched just like Sasuke is, waiting for Orochimaru's next move.

The voice laughs then says," Well, it looks like Kakashi-san has already started training you." I say," What do you want with me?" He chuckles darkly then says," I want you. You would make an excellent protégé." Sasuke says," No! You already have me! You don't need another Sharingan!"

Orochimaru suddenly is right in front of us looking at me curiously. He says," Another Sharingan? The only way that is possible would mean that she is your…imouto." A knowing look takes the place of the curious one. Sasuke says," No! You don't need her!" He says," But just think, two Sharingan being trained by me. I would be so powerful." A look of lust and wanting comes into his eyes and suddenly I can't seem to move. Sasuke yells at me," Avoid his eyes! He'll paralyze you!" Orochimaru says," Too late. She's mine." Suddenly Orochimaru tenses into a crouch and gets ready to attack. Sasuke does the same in front of me. Orochimaru and Sasuke begin fighting so fast that my eyes can't see every move they make.

Finally, Orochimaru stops and says," I'm tired of playing with you Sasuke-kun and I don't want to lose my only Sharingan right now." Sasuke is suddenly right beside me again in a protective stance. So fast that I don't even see him, Orochimaru is in front of us and Sasuke is paralyzed too. Orochimaru smiles a wicked grin then his neck seems to stretch out. He does it so fast that I feel his teeth in my shoulder before I even know what's going on. I scream at the sharp, searing pain. He releases from me from his bite and then walks to the edge of the trees. He turns back and suddenly we can move again. He says," I'll see you later, Naoko-chan. Oh, and Sasuke-kun; I have an assignment for you and Kabuto-san. Find him then come see me." He walks off before Sasuke has time to pull out a kunai blade.

I fall to the ground in agony. I am trying to keep my mouth shut so that I won't scream again. I feel Sasuke trying to help me lie down and to comfort me. I don't want to be comforted I only want the pain to stop. I can't tell him this because I'm afraid that if I try I might yell.

He stays with me until I'm almost unconscious. He says," I can hear someone running through the trees straight for us. I have to leave you. It's probably Kakashi-sensei, but if it isn't I'll come back." He gets up and runs into the trees and leaves me. I wait in silent agony for the person to find me. Not a minute later they do. Sasuke was right, it is Kakashi.

I see Kakashi notice me then run over. He quickly looks at me for any apparent wounds and obviously doesn't find any. He feels my forehead and can tell I am running an alarmingly high fever. He realizes that I must have found Sasuke and that maybe his new teacher was with him. Kakashi pulls back my collar and see the recent bite mark that Orochimaru left. He quickly scoops me up into his arms and begins running back to Konoha. Halfway back I pass out.

Suddenly I wake up when we are about to walk through the gate to the village. Kakashi sees that I am finally conscious and I can see the relief on his face. He says," So you finally decided to come back." I am too exhausted to talk so instead I just focus on the path ahead. We walk underneath the gate and then Kakashi starts running again. The pain is almost gone except for when I am jostled against him during the run. I focus on the pain as it grows dimmer then a small sharp pang returns then begins to dim once again.

I try to speak and at first it's just an unintelligible mumble then words. I say," Where are we going?" He hears me and says," I have to seal that curse away." I know he doesn't answer my question but I'm too tired to ask another. I simply wait for him to stop at his destination. Finally he does, but I don't recognize where we are. He takes me inside to a room. In the center of the room there is a circle of columns. He sets me down in the middle of the columns then pulls out ten kunai blades.

I concentrate on what he is doing so that I don't pass out again. He takes one kunai and draws two circles inside each other. Next, he puts all but one kunai on the lines of the circles where they are equally apart. He takes the last blade and cuts the palm of his right hand. Everything is just like it was with Sasuke. He takes two fingers on his right hand and lets his blood drip onto them. Warily, I watch him. He tells me to sit up and I do so. Then he takes his fingers and starts at the curse mark. He begins drawing the precise lines down my back and onto the floor away from the mark. Finally awhile later he finishes. He says," There, that's done. Just a little bit longer and it will all be over."

He stands behind me and does the hand signs for the Fujahoin! The Sealing of the Curse! I feel his hand hit the mark with a lot of force and then I feel the same sharp, searing pain all over again. I scream and yell but he doesn't stop it. I hear something that sounds like sizzling. At last Kakashi lets go and all the lines around and on me are gone along with most of the pain. I fall forward onto my hands and knees. I hate that anyone, especially my sensei is seeing me this weak. Kakashi says," This jutsu should contain it if the curse mark comes back, but you have to want it to work. You have to have the will to control it, otherwise it will have its way again."

I fall forward unconscious. Kakashi says," You're so exhausted, I barely recognize you." He picks me up and takes me to the Konoha Hospital. He has a medic-nin put me in a single room. He tells the medic-nin to keep me on oxygen and to continue monitoring my vitals. He also suggests that they don't let anyone except for him, Hokage, and the black ops into the room. They do as he says, but one asks him if he could leave the room for a moment.

Kakashi obliges but only because he has to talk to the Hokage. He pushes past the few people in the hallway and once outside begins running. Once he is gone, the medic-nin changes the bandages around my rib cage and checks how well my ribs are healing. After she's done they leave me alone for the most part.


	16. Chapter 16

Finally Kakashi reaches the Hokage's office. He stops and knocks on the door. From inside the room the Hokage answers," Enter." When she sees that it is Kakashi she says," Ahh, Kakashi-san. I thought you were out looking for your missing pupil. What might bring you here?" Kakashi says," I need a team of black ops to guard Naoko-chan at the Konoha Hospital. She was looking for Orochimaru-sensei and he…he bit her." The Hokage says," So she is still alive then?" Kakashi says," Hai, she is alive. The curse seems to be the same as Sasuke-kun's though, but I can't tell for sure." The Hokage says," I will send for a team of black ops as you requested, but for now it would be wise for you to stay with your student." Kakashi says," Thank you, Tsunade-sama."

Instead of using the door he jumps out onto the roof. He jumps from one rooftop to another until he is at the hospital. He quietly swings in my window and lands on the windowsill. He observes the changes in the room from this position. He sees that everything is the exact same way as it was with my brother. (Except the fact that this time the black ops haven't arrived yet.) He knows that he'll have to train me just like he did with Sasuke.

He hops down from the window and then crosses over to the door. He sits with his back against the wall, facing the window. He watches as the villagers go along their daily routines. He sees Jiraiya heading towards the hot springs again.

Kakashi snaps back into focus when he hears the door slowly being pushed open. He turns his head to see who is visiting me. He relaxes when he sees its Iruka. He says," Hello, Iruka-sensei." Iruka jumps at the sound of Kakashi's voice and Kakashi can't help but smile for a moment. Kakashi says," What are you doing up here. No one is supposed to be allowed to visit." Iruka says," I told them the Hokage sent me." Kakashi says," Alright, but why are you here? You don't even know her." Iruka says," I only heard that one of your students was badly hurt. I thought it might have been Naruto-kun." Kakashi says," Iruka-sensei you shouldn't be here. A team of black ops are coming soon and I don't think you'd want to explain to them. They aren't as friendly as I am." Iruka says," I suppose I do need to get back to my class. Goodbye, Kakashi-sensei." Iruka walks back out and a few minutes later Kakashi sees him outside the window, walking back to the academy.

Right after Iruka walks out of sight, the window is hosting three black ops. The first jumps down while the second jumps beside Kakashi, holding a kunai blade. Kakashi answers the unspoken question," I am her team leader, and I was the one who dealt with the curse on her and the last victim of Orochimaru-sensei. I am supposed to be here." The second man lowers his kunai and the third says," We were told to come here and guard the girl from any intruders." Kakashi says," That is correct, only anyone caught is not to be killed." The first man asks," Unless that person is Orochimaru-sensei himself?" Kakashi says," Hai, him or one of his followers, but only them."

They each nod then take up separate positions. The first is in front of the window, the second is in front of the door, while the third is standing against the wall to Kakashi's right. Kakashi remembers this defensive formation from when he was in the black ops. It was meant for a four person cell. He walks over and takes up the last position, standing beside me…


	17. Chapter 17

Sakura yells, "I can't believe you got us lost!" Naruto says," Hey! That wasn't my fault! I thought you said to find a clover, not find a way over!" Sakura says," How is that not your fault!" He says," Because you didn't clarify!" Sakura says," I shouldn't have to, moron!" They finally just found the gate to Konohagakure. Naruto got them both lost by looking for a clover. Instead of helping Sakura try to find a way over a gorge.

They walk down the main road towards where the Hokage's office is. They're really looking for Kakashi but haven't been able to find a trace of him. Naruto says," You know, you're really annoying sometimes." Sakura turns to him and says," I'm annoying! You're the one always being annoying!" Suddenly restraining hands on both of their shoulders bring Naruto and Sakura to a halt. They turn to see who interrupted.

It is Kakashi. Sakura says," Kakashi-sensei, we weren't able to find her." Kakashi says," I know, that's because I found her." Naruto says," Where is she? We gotta see her! I want-." Kakashi cuts him off and says," Not now, Naruto-kun." Sakura says," Kakashi-sensei is Naoko-chan ok?" Kakashi says," Before I found her, Orochimaru-sensei did. We think he might have hurt her." He gives Sakura a meaningful glance and knows that she understands what Orochimaru did. Sakura asks," When will she be released from the hospital?" Kakashi says," I don't know when, exactly." Naruto says," What do you want us to do?" Kakashi says," The best thing for you two to do right now is to go home and rest."

He lets go of Naruto's shoulder but not Sakura's. He watches as Naruto walks home. Kakashi says," Let's walk for awhile Sakura-chan." They do and Sakura asks Kakashi," You'll be training Naoko-chan alone once she is feeling better?" Kakashi says," Hai, I need to teach her as soon as I can. You understand why?" Sakura says," The same reason you had for teaching Sasuke-kun. Kakashi-sensei, will Naoko-chan…will she run away, like Sasuke-kun did, to…him?" He says," I don't know. First, I just need her to wake up."

Suddenly a noise that sounds like an enraged yell comes from one of the hospital rooms. They both stop and look up at the hospital. Sakura says," Well, it sounds like she just woke up." Kakashi jumps up onto the roof of the nearest building then up to, what he thinks is my window. He guessed correctly and so did Sakura. I am awake.

The black ops trio is no longer in a defensive position around me. Instead they are trying to find a way to make me lie back down without getting themselves or I hurt. Kakashi jumps through the window and lands a few feet in front of me. The first thing he notices is that the curse mark has come back. Trying not to panic he says," Naoko-chan, stop." I look up at him then he steps forward. He stops once he is right in front of me, and then he puts his hands on my shoulders.

I take a deep breath and close my eyes, willing the curse mark to recede again. I feel it slowly going back into the containment of the seal. Once I know it is gone again, I open my eyes. The mark feels like it is burning. I realize that the curse used up a lot of my chakra, almost all of it. It is hard for me to even keep my self standing, none the less awake. My legs give out beneath me and I fall to my knees on the floor. Kakashi is still standing in front of me and doesn't move. I reach up and grab my shoulder, hoping that might decrease the pain. I hear him say," Leave us for a few minutes, I need to explain things alone." I hear the three men leave through the window.

Kakashi bends down in front of me. I look up at his face then say," If Sasuke-kun was stuck with a bunch of overprotective black ops then I think I might know why he ran away." I try to smile at my stupid joke but instead it gets twisted into a pathetic grimace. Kakashi picks me up and I groan when he accidentally touches my shoulder. Reassuringly he says," It's alright." He sets me back down on the bed then sets on a chair beside my bed.

He looks out the window then says," I'm going to have to seal that again." I say," Those three surprised me, I didn't mean for that to happen. Sorry, Kakashi-sensei." He says," You're so much like him, Kaiya-chan." Half asleep I ask," Like who?" He says," Like Sasuke-kun. You both get into almost the same situations." I say," Sorry." He looks up at me and notices I'm about to fall asleep. He smiles then says," Go to sleep, Kaiya-chan. I'll still be here when you wake up." I do as he says and I fall asleep.

Once he knows I'm asleep, he puts the oxygen and most of the monitors back on me. A moment later the black ops come back and they take up the four man cell position again.

A few hours later he goes to Sakura's house to pick up a few things for me. He gets back to the Konoha Hospital but a medic-nin won't let him back up to my room. Instead of arguing with them he walks back outside and jumps up to my window then inside. It gives the black ops trio a slight scare but it works.

He sets down the clothes Sakura gave him on the chair, while he sits up against the wall still as a part of the defense position. Soon he falls asleep, and then the black ops take up a three man position


	18. Chapter 18

I wake up in a cold sweat, screaming. I sit up straight out of surprise of the nightmare. Kakashi is standing over me worried. I close my eyes and I see it all again. The orphanage, Sasuke in Itachi's arms, Itachi trying to kill me. I open them fast and see Kakashi still standing over me. I whisper," Just a dream. It was just a dream." Until I let out a ragged sigh, do I realize that I was holding my breath.

I pull my knees up and put my arms on top of them. I notice the black ops have melted into the shadows. I know they haven't left because I can still sense them all around me. I rest my head on my arms and feel my shoulder protest slightly against the movement. I look out the window and can faintly see the sun starting to rise. I look down not wanting to think about anything.

I feel Kakashi push back my hair out of my face. I look up at his face and he says," What was it about?" I say," It was about the orphanage and Sasuke-kun, Itachi-san, and I." He understands why it was a nightmare now. I yawn and he says," You need to go back to sleep." I feel him push me back down onto the pillows. I relax and then say to him," You really need to sleep some, too." I hear him chuckle. I feel him lean down beside me then whisper in my ear," Go to sleep, Kaiya-chan." I feel myself slowly drift off again.

When I'm asleep again, he puts the bandage back around my eyes so that the morning sun won't wake me. About noon the next day I wake up. Just like last time I can't see anything. I remember that last time it was because someone had wrapped a bandage around my eyes and forehead.

I reach up to take it off, but someone's hand grabs my wrist. I freeze until a voice says," Are you really awake this time?" I say," Of course I'm awake Sensei, and I'm blind too." He lets go of my wrist and I feel him carefully taking off the bandages. I feel him unwrapping them, then I'm blinded by the sunlight from the huge window. I blink and let my eyes readjust to the light. I remember what Kakashi said and I ask," What did you mean 'this time'?" He says," You kept talking in your sleep." I say," Sorry, I couldn't help it." He says," I know." I can see again, and I notice that the trio of silent strangers is back in sight. I ask," Can I please leave today?" He says," I don't know, I need to talk with the Hokage first." I say," Well, when you do go could you take your three friends with you. I appreciate them but they aren't needed." Kakashi says," If I'm leaving for a little while then they are definitely staying." I sigh then say," Alright, but only until you get back." I suddenly think of all the stuff I could do to annoy those three until he gets back. I guess Kakashi saw the mischievous look come into my eyes, because he says," And please no fighting and don't do anything you wouldn't want me to know about." I frown then get another idea. I say," I don't know what you're talking about?" He shakes his head and smiles then says," Sure you don't, just remember I'll find out." I say," I will." He says," I need to leave now; I'll be back in an hour."

He gets up and walks out then I carefully take to the task of taking off all the sticky monitors. I press the button beside my bed for a medic-nin. A minute later a medic-nin comes in and almost gets jumped by the black ops team. He comes over and asks me what is wrong. I tell him nothing, and ask for a sling for my left arm. He leaves then comes back a few minutes later with one. He carefully helps me with it then leaves again.

I stand up and see my audience warily watching me. I roll my eyes at them then say," Honestly, would you relax already. I just need to train some and you three can help me." They look at one another then turn and nod at me. I smile then say," Alright, let's begin." I take a step forward then quickly dodge to my right. One of them threw a shuriken at me.

I see all three of them reach for two kunai blades. I know I can't dodge them so I jump to the far wall. I channel all my chakra to the soles of my feet and climb the wall out of the way of the six sharp blades. Suddenly the curse mark is burning like fire. I can't keep my chakra in my soles, so I fall to the floor. I land hard on my back. I reach up and grab my shoulder hoping that will ease some of the pain.

Out of the corner of my eye I see the black ops cell looking at me. They know that none of their kunai hit me and don't know why I am in agony. After a few minutes the pain begins to leave again. I slowly sit up then see the three looking at me with a silent question. I say," No more; that was a bad idea."

I stand up then start to fall over. I feel a strong hand grab my right arm. I look up at Kakashi's face. He has one eyebrow raised in a question, but he doesn't say anything. Instead, he helps me stand then walk back to the bed.

I sit down and he sits on the chair in front of me. I answer his question," Umm, I was training." He says," I should have made myself clear before I left. I meant, don't do anything that you wouldn't want to explain to me, and don't try to use your chakra." I say," Why did it react to my chakra?" I don't have to say what I mean. He says," I don't know why. I only know that whenever you use your chakra the mark will burn and the curse will try to come back." I say," Then how am I supposed to fight, how do you expect me to protect myself on missions?" He says," I'm going to train you how to deal with it. How to ignore it and still use your chakra." I say," Just like you did with Sasuke-kun?" He says," Hai, and we will start training as soon as you feel up to walking again." I say," I can leave?" He smiles then says," Hai, _we_ can leave. Tsunade-sama happened to be in the lobby. " I say," Wait, what about them?" He says," Our company is free to leave whenever they like." The three black ops Shinobi glance at each other then jump out the window.

I say," Can we go now?" He says," Sure, get your things." I stand up and collect the pair of clothes he brought me. He says," Before we leave you need to get changed. I'll go sign you out downstairs, when you're done meet me down there." He walks out leaving me alone. I quickly strip and change pants then glance in the mirror. I see the curse mark on my shoulder it's a small circle with what I think looks like the Earth symbol inside it. I pull on my shirt then run down the stairs.

I walk up to Kakashi who is waiting for me by the door. He opens the door for me and we walk outside. I ask," Where are we going, now?" He says," I need to seal that curse away again. I didn't do it thoroughly enough the first time." I say," Alright, Kakashi-sensei."

I follow him until we get to the same building as last time. He leads me into the same room with the columns. I sit down in the middle of the circle, while he draws two circles around me. He takes out ten kunai blades and puts all but one in two circles around me. He takes that one and cuts his palm open. He lets the blood run down to his fingertips. Just like last time he begins making marks from the curse mark down past the edges of the circles. I wait silently hoping that it won't hurt as much as last time did. He finishes then stands behind me. He makes the signs of the seal then pushes his hand against the mark. I was wrong. If anything, it hurts worse than last time. I scream but he doesn't stop. Once all the lines have receded to the mark he lets go.

He studies me for a moment, trying to see if I'm strong enough to stand or if he should wait. He decides to wait for a few minutes until the pain leaves and my strength returns. When he thinks I am ready he helps me up then ushers me back outside and we continue walking away from the village. I ask," Where are we going now?" He says," You'll see once we get there." I walk in silence beside him for what seems like hours.


	19. Chapter 19

Finally we stop about a mile south of the village. We are at a large clearing in the forest. In the middle of the clearing there are tall, rocky hills. I follow Kakashi to the top of the nearest one. He says," I am going to teach you to use your chakra no matter the pain it causes. I want you to try to attack me by using your chakra." I focus then quickly to the hand signs for Fire Style—Art of The Dragon's Breath, Phoenix Technique! He quickly jumps to the side away from me and my attack. There wasn't much need for him to move at all though. As soon as I finish the signs and start the attack, the curse mark starts throbbing and I instantly stop my attempt at the jutsu.

I fall back to the ground with groan. I stay on my back and don't try to get up yet. Kakashi comes over to me and says," This is why we train first." He helps me up then says," You need to grow more accustomed to the pain. After you do, it will only feel like a kunai blade piercing your shoulder." I say," That would be a lot better." He says," I agree, now try it again."

We continue this through the night, until about one a.m. Finally, I do what Kakashi says to his approval. He helps me up for what seems to be the hundredth time. He collects our shuriken and kunai then we both head back to the village. Once inside the village, he walks me to Sakura's house. Before I go inside he tells me," Get some sleep, then meet Sakura-chan, Naruto-kun, and I at the Hokage's office at two o'clock." I nod my head yes then turn to walk inside. He stops me by saying," Oh, and Naoko-chan…" I turn to look at him then he continues," You did well today." He smiles at me then turns and walks away and I go inside and fall asleep.


	20. Chapter 20

Just before two I wake up. I get up and get a drink before leaving to meet them. I get to the Hokage's office right at two o'clock. Naruto and Sakura are already waiting, but Kakashi is late. The Hokage asks," Where is your Sensei?" Sakura hesitates to answer," Um, he had to run an errand. I suppose it must have taken longer than he thought it would." Both Naruto and I know she is lying but the Hokage seems not to. I hope that Kakashi gets here quickly.

I glance out the window and I see Kakashi running down the road towards the building. I hope for our sake and his that he can make it before the Hokage starts asking more questions. A moment later he casually comes walking in the room and stands next to us. The Hokage smiles," Nice of you to join us, Hatake Kakashi." The Hokage turns around and walks back to her desk. Kakashi grins under his mask," My apologies, Tsunade-sama. I had to run an errand." Kakashi winks at Sakura just before the Hokage turns back around.

She nods," Hai. I have a mission for all of Team 7. Is your team up to a mission?" The Hokage eyes me questionably. Kakashi replies," They are ready for a new mission." The Hokage looks us up and down," Very well then. I shall explain your mission. You and your team will be going undercover as a four man cell of black ops agents. I have been informed of an imposter in the ranks of another cell. You are to be sent on a fake mission as black ops Shinobi and will join up with who we believe to be the imposter. Your real mission is to bring him back here. Your alibi is that you were told to travel from the place you are to meet him at, back to Konohagakure to escort a highly honored person to the Land of The Clouds." Naruto yells," Awesome! Who is the highly honored dude?" Tsunade glares," That would be me."

She smiles at the look on Naruto's face," But I expect the imposter to be apprehended before you arrive here." I say," Once he is brought here, what will happen to him?" She says," He will be tried then sent back to his homeland for sentencing." Kakashi asks," What are we to be called during this mission?" She sighs," Everyone will notice you the moment they see you so you will keep your real name. But as for Naruto-kun, your name will be Sora-kun." Sakura giggles then whispers to him," How sweet, your name means sky." Tusunade continues," And Sakura-chan, your name will be Michi-chan; meaning pathway." She turns to me then finishes," Unfortunately I was unable to think of an appropriate name for you, Naoko-chan." I smile then say," I have an idea." She raises an eyebrow," What name do you have in mind?" I glance up at Kakashi," Kaiya." Kakashi chuckles under his breath then the Hokage says," Ah, it means forgiveness. I believe that name suits you well. Kaiya-chan, it is." Kakashi asks," Er, what about clothes?" The Hokage remembers," Oh, hai. Each of your uniforms are in the next room down the hall on your right. Good luck to each of you."

Naruto looks like he is about to ask another question. Both Kakashi and I realize this and we both have a pretty good idea of what he is going to ask. Kakashi quickly pulls us out the door and down the hallway. We go into the room and see all four of our new uniforms waiting. Sakura and I take ours down the hall to one of the bathrooms. Leaving Kakashi and Naruto to try and find the men's bathroom. Eventually they do and quickly change. By the time they meet Sakura and I back in the second room we have been waiting for a while.

Kakashi looks us over, making sure we all have on everything correctly. Kakashi makes Naruto go back to the bathroom because his pants were on backwards. Finally once Naruto returns we are ready to head out.

We all walk outside the village and towards the Land of The Mist. After a few minutes of walking Kakashi stops us. He asks," Did you all hear that?" Naruto and Sakura are a few feet in front of us. Naruto grins," I didn't hear anything. You must be imagining things, Sensei. Come on, let's get going." He takes a few more steps forward then we all hear Kakashi whisper," Oh no." I catch a short glimpse of a bleeding Sakura and Naruto. It surprises me and I freeze. Suddenly I'm being thrown backwards by Kakashi. I hear what sounds like kunai blades and shuriken slice through the air where Kakashi and I just were and where Sakura and Naruto still are.

Kakashi and I both jump up, looking at Naruto and Sakura. We see that they're both lying beside each other on the ground where they were standing just before the attack. I gasp at the damage done to both of them. They have kunai and shuriken stuck all over their bodies like our training dummies. Sakura manages to sit up and Kakashi and I hurry over to them. Naruto is in worse shape than Sakura is.

Kakashi becomes serious," We need to get them back to the village and to the hospital." I order," You get Naruto-kun; I'll take care of Sakura-chan." I carefully help Sakura stand up then begin walking back towards the village, with Kakashi carrying Naruto behind us. I call back to them," Why was that trap there?" Kakashi says," It seems that Naruto-kun fell over a thread that tripped the trap, causing those weapons to be thrown at them. Probably, it was left from a team when they were doing a training exercise."

We walk in silence until we reach the Konoha Hospital. We walk inside and a medic-nin quickly takes Sakura from me, who is almost unconscious, and Naruto from Kakashi, who is already out cold. After they are taken down the hall to be treated, Kakashi turns to me. He tells me," Stay here with them. I have to talk go talk with the Hokage about the mission." He walks out while I sit in a chair against the far wall and wait.

Almost twenty minutes later he comes back. He sits in a chair beside me quietly," The two of us will continue the mission." I question," How? Now we will only be a two man cell." He explains," There are no other teams available to do this mission. If asked, we got separated from the other two Shinobi. The Hokage gave me a direct order." I sigh then ask," When do we leave?" He grimly replies," We have thirty minutes." I stand up," There isn't any point in waiting. They won't be allowed visitors for another three hours." Kakashi stands up too," You're right, besides we need to make up for lost time."

We walk outside and leave once more, only this time there are only two masked black ops Shinobi walking out of the gate. We stop late that night to make camp and eat. After our meal we sit down and prepare to go to sleep for the night.

Kakashi startles me," Kaiya-chan, are you bleeding?" I check myself over," What? I don't think so." He points," There's blood on the grass beside you." I reach down to touch the grass. The blood on it is still wet. That's when I notice the back of my hand is bleeding. I say," I must have cut the back of my hand on something." He grabs the bandage and walks over then sits down beside me. He looks at the cut then at my arm protector. I notice there is a small amount of blood on the end, closest to my hand. He tells me," Your arm protector must have cut you. It's resting on the back of your hand, which means it must be too lose." He commands," Give me your arm."

I do and he turns it over where the straps are. He tightens them to where my arm protector won't slide down my arm anymore. I smile," Thank you, Kakashi-san." He smiles back then starts to wrap it in the bandage. I lie down where I am and wait for Kakashi to finish wrapping my hand. Once he does he puts away the extra then lays down where he first was. I fall asleep looking up at the stars.


	21. Chapter 21

Jarred out of my dreams, I sit up straight. It's early in the morning. I look around me and observe what has changed since last night. The fire is out and a heavy fog is all around us. I can only see about twenty feet in front of me. It's very cold and not from the mist. Winter is defiantly just around the corner. It's already the end of November.

I stand up and walk over to where Kakashi is still sleeping. I say," Kakashi-san, we need to keep moving. We only have two hours before we have to meet that other black ops Shinobi." He doesn't move so I give up. I move back over beside the dead fire and make sure it is completely out. I sit down and try to think of something to do.

I am so bored. Finally I pull out a kunai blade and take aim. I throw it at Kakashi and it lands right beside his face, just as I planned. Surprised, he manages to scramble a foot or two away before he realizes there is no danger. He hollers," Why did you do that?" I shrug," Because you wouldn't wake up." He orders," Never do that again, Kaiya-chan." I sigh," Sorry, but we need to get going. We don't have a lot of time to waste." He comments," Make sure the fire is out and we'll leave." We both stand up," I already did." He replies," Alright, then let's go."

We take off walking the last two hours of the trip to the Land of The Mist. Almost thirty minutes later I break the long silence. I ask," Kakashi-san, can I ask you something?" He says," Sure, Kaiya-chan." I whisper," I was wondering if you could tell me about my brother…Itachi-san." Kakashi sighs," Itachi-san was killed by Sasuke-chan." I tell him," I knew that. I mean why did he do all those things? How come he even left?" Kakashi whispers," You want the whole story?" I answer," Hai, I do." He quietly says," Your otosan was the master mind behind the whole plan. On his orders, Itachi-san joined ANBU as his spy. But in reality, Itachi-san was a double agent…he was a spy for the village. Itachi-san's top secret mission…was to wipe out the Uchiha Clan." I can tell this is kind of hard for him to talk about but I need to know. I question him," Why would he do that!" Kakashi explains," When Itachi-san was barely four; he witnessed numbers of people slaughtered in cold blood. After that he loathed war and desired peace. The village leaders used that against him. He didn't betray the Clan because of a grudge…he simply had no alternative. The third Hokage did all he could…he was the only one who thought it was wrong. He tried to convince the others that reconciliation was the answer…but he failed. And time ran out. Itachi-san completed the mission quickly. Except for two little details… There was one thing he forgot to do…to kill his little brother and sister. Itachi-san never stopped worrying that you and Sasuke-kun would learn the truth. He joined the Akatuski to protect his village from the inside." I hold back a tear," He never lost his love for the village." Kakashi continues," That's right. Crying his bloody tears he killed his emotions…exterminated his kinsmen…to save the village. But he couldn't kill his little brother or sister. He traded you and your brother's love for your hatred and even still Itachi-san died with a smile on his face. To him your lives were more important than the village. Itachi-san had a disease and he took all kinds of medicine just to keep himself alive. He was dying and knew his time was short. He planned his last battle with Sasuke-kun all so that he could die at his feet. During the battle Sasuke-kun learned the truth about his brother. Never forget, Kaiya-chan that both your brothers are true Shinobi." I whisper," I won't."

We walk in silence for awhile," Why did otosan do that to Itachi-san?" Kakashi tells me," I never really knew your otosan, so I don't know." I sigh," Oh, ok. Never mind then."

We continue walking for awhile then Kakashi tries to cheer me up by talking about how Naruto is probably trying to escape his hospital room. We laugh with each other and continue talking until Kakashi stops in beside me. I stop too and listen and look around me carefully. I hear a twig snap then a soft thud behind us. We both spin around to face the person.

We relax once we see it is another ANBU black ops Shinobi. Both Kakashi and I move our masks to the sides of our faces to we can see better and he can see us. The man laughs," A girl? They sent a girl on this mission?" I'm about to start throwing a few shuriken at this guy's head and Kakashi knows it. He puts a restraining hand on my right shoulder," It isn't smart to underestimate Kaiya-chan."

The man smirks," Well, I guess I'll have to wait later to find that out. Isn't that right Kakashi-san?" Kakashi smiles," Hai, it is." The man introduces himself," I'm Ryuu, and I already know who you are now. So you've decided to come back to the black ops, eh, Kakashi-san?" Kakashi answers," At least for the time being."

Ryuu turns his eyes back to me then asks Kakashi," Does she ever talk?" I smile," Only when there is a need too." He shakes his head," I don't understand why they would risk a child's life by sending her on a mission like this. She doesn't even look old enough to be ANBU." I bristle," I can take care of myself." He chuckles," Sure, just wait till I'm the one saving your butt." I smile at him then say," We'll see."

We begin making the journey back to Konohagakure. The farther away we get from the Land of The Mist, the less fog there is. Soon we are only four hours away from the village so we stop and make camp again. I make a small fire then Kakashi and Ryuu eat while I drink a full cup of tea. After they finish eating Ryuu goes off to find more wood.

While he is gone Kakashi tells me," Kaiya-chan, you need to eat." I answer," Kakashi-san, I don't want anything." He asks," Do you feel sick?" I start to answer," Somewhat…" He becomes attentive," Since when? You didn't mention it to me earlier." I shrug," I thought it'd go away." He complains," Kaiya-chan…" I tell him," I'll be fine Kakashi-san, just leave me alone for now." He stops asking questions but I still keep catching glimpses of him watching me. I get a drink and put a small packet of herbs in it to sweeten it some.

A few minutes later Ryuu comes back with enough firewood to last us the night. Kakashi pulls out 'Make out Paradise' then sits down on one side of the fire. Ryuu gets up and puts another log on the fire then lies back down. I lie down so that we are all evenly apart from each other. Suddenly we hear a lone wolf howl in the distance. Ryuu and Kakashi jump up in surprise, but I only prop myself up on my arm to look around. Ryuu lies back down but this time on his side, facing away from us and the fire. I lie on my back again and look up at the stars.

I'm very cold for some reason so I scoot closer to the fire. Kakashi gives me a curious look but I ignore him. It's not like I'm seriously ill. I see Kakashi pick up his book that he dropped then put it away. He lies back down but this time he seems to be closer to me. Before I can bother to check I am asleep.


	22. Chapter 22

The next morning I wake up to a voice demanding," Come on, Kaiya-chan. Wake up." I hear another voice," Maybe she's dead." I feel someone touch the side of my neck with a cool hand. I hear the first voice answer," I can feel her pulse, she's not dead." I recognize the voice as Kakashi's. I open my eyes and everything gradually comes into focus.

Kakashi is sitting beside me with an anxious expression on his face. Next I see Ryuu standing beside me with only what seems to be a curious look on his face. They see I'm awake and Kakashi asks," Are you alright? We couldn't wake you up." I sit up and Kakashi helps me by putting a hand on my back so that I won't fall backwards.

I tell them," I must have accidentally put sleeping powder in my drink last night." I give Kakashi a look and I can tell he knows I'm lying. I know he'll call me out on it later, after we are rid of Ryuu. Ryuu chuckles," What an amateur mistake." I ignore him as he puts out the smoldering fire.

Kakashi helps me up then we keep heading for Konohagakure. I notice I'm still cold, and then I realize I must have a fever. I put on my cloak to help keep the wind off me so that I can warm up some. I think maybe I am sick. Either way I don't have much time to think about it. About a mile away from the village Kakashi gives the signal to capture Ryuu.

Kakashi is walking beside him and I am a few feet behind them both. I pull out a kunai and silently throw it at Ryuu's leg. It hits the target with pin point precision. Ryuu falls and Kakashi is quickly standing over him, kunai blade out. Ryuu glares," So you're not coming back to the black ops, Kakashi-san? This was all another one of the Hokage's tricks." I walk over and stand beside him," You've been leaking information to outsiders. You deserve more than this." He smiles," Oh, that's what this is about? Come on, give me a break. They threatened to blackmail me." Kakashi yells," Give you a break? Your big mouth got a Konohagakure Shinobi assassinated!" He calms down," Hey now, that wasn't my fault! I didn't know they'd go do that!" I motion," Let's go. I don't want to hear his pitiful excuses anymore."

Suddenly a twig snaps in the forest beside us. Kakashi and I quickly turn towards the noise. Ryuu takes this opportunity to pull out one of his own kunai. He throws it at my head. I turn and duck out of the way. It lands a few feet behind me. I pull out a kunai, ready to throw it at Ryuu, while simultaneously taking off my cloak. Suddenly, everything disappears and I get a short glimpse of Ryuu disappearing in a puff of smoke. I yell," Kakashi-san, it's a doppelganger!"

I turn my attention to the trees while he throws a kunai at the doppelganger, causing it to disappear. I see a blood trail leading into the trees just in front of us. I jump into the branches above where the trail ends. Below me I see Ryuu hiding behind a tree. I drop down right behind him," Gotcha again."

I grab his arm and pull him from behind the tree. I shove him to the ground, falling down beside him myself. I put my hand on the back of his leg where my kunai hit him. I put pressure on the wound and he screams. I inform him," I'm trying to keep you from bleeding to death. That's a deep wound." He groans," Why do you care if I live? Weren't you sent to kill me?" Before Kakashi can answer I say," We're not assassins." Kakashi jumps over beside us," Not to kill you. Only to deliver you to Konohagakure for a trial." He panics," But I'll be accused guilty!"

Kakashi hands me the bandages and I wrap Ryuu's leg. I lean down to his ear then whisper," That's the point." I pull the bandage tight and he gasps at the resulting pain. While Kakashi takes away all his weapons I find my cloak and put it back on. Then we both help him up and continue to Konohagakure.


	23. Chapter 23

When we only have a fourth of the way to go until we reach the village, Ryuu tries another attack. Kakashi is helping him walk while I'm walking beside them. With his free hand, Ryuu slips a kunai out of my pouch. He brings it up behind my neck then plants his feet firmly on the path. His arm falls off Kakashi's shoulder and he is leaning all his weight on me. I try to turn to face him but I feel him press my kunai blade against my neck.

I freeze and look up at Kakashi. I think about trying my Barrage of Lions. Just like last time, everything disappears then I get a glimpse of me bleeding profusely and falling. I feel the mark burning and trying to spread. I will myself to push the mark back down and it stays contained. That idea is out. I see Kakashi looking at me almost it seems in amazement. I close my eyes then slowly reach down to my pouch. I pull out a kunai then bring it up, stabbing Ryuu's arm. He drops the kunai blade and I kick it away while jumping a few feet to the side.

Like Kakashi, he is looking at my face in what seems to be awe. I contemplate using my Fire Jutsu and get a glimpse of Ryuu jumping backwards, out of the way. I quickly do the signs then use my Fire Jutsu! Blaze of Glory! Just as I saw he would do, he jumps a ways back right in front of Kakashi. While I used my jutsu Kakashi made a doppelganger and moved a few yards behind Ryuu. Now Ryuu is oblivious to the real Kakashi standing just behind him.

Everything goes blank and I see Ryuu doing Tori, Sign of the Bird! I come back to the present and see Ryuu about to start the sign. I do it too, at the same time. In surprise, Ryuu doesn't do the actual technique. Kakashi takes a step forward and pushes a kunai against his neck. He jumps at the feel of the cold steel, cutting his neck slightly when he does. I reach into my pack and pull out a large shuriken. Ryuu is trying to struggle out of Kakashi's grasp and is distracted.

Kakashi knows what I'm about to do. He gives a small nod and I grin. I've wanted to try this technique for a long time. I throw the shuriken a little to the left of Ryuu and Kakashi. While Ryuu is distracted by the sharp flying shuriken, I make a doppelganger then have it throw another large shuriken a little to the right of Ryuu. As the shuriken gets closer to them, Ryuu grabs one of Kakashi's kunai blades. Kakashi quickly releases him and moves back then into a crouch, watching Ryuu and the shuriken.

Ryuu moves to the left and knows that the shuriken won't hit him. A moment before the shuriken would pass beside Kakashi and Ryuu, it suddenly transforms back into myself. I turn my body towards Ryuu and hit him right between his shoulder blades. He falls forward and lands causing a cloud of dirt to rise up. Once the dirt cloud clears, Kakashi sees me sitting on Ryuu's back, smiling and twirling a kunai blade around my finger. He can't help but laugh at the sight. He thinks," She's so much like Sasuke-kun. I've seem both of them use that technique and now she used her Sharingan eyes."

He walks over and I stand up then he pulls an unconscious Ryuu up beside us, too. We both take an arm and put them over our shoulders to support his weight between us. We walk the last of the way into Konohagakure and take him to a waiting group of Shinobi who will guard him until the trial.

After this Kakashi walks with me to the hospital to visit Sakura and Naruto. Once we reach the doors he stops and turns to look at me. He asks," Do you even know what you did today?" I'm oblivious," What are you talking about?" He tells me," You have Sharingan eyes. You used them in the battle against Ryuu-san. Did you not realize it?" I smiles," I've known I've had them since I was put in the orphanage. I just never knew how to use them, before." Kakashi questions," So this was your first time using them?" I admit," No, I've used them once before, it was when Naruto-kun and I fought on the path from my village."

He asks," Why didn't you mention it to me?" I shrug," It's not a surprise. I mean, doesn't everyone in my clan have Sharingans?" Kakashi sighs," No, only very few members of the Uchiha Clan have them." I pause," Oh, no one ever explained them to me. I only knew that I have them." Kakashi replies," I'll explain them to you later, right now let's visit our friends."

We walk inside and take our time visiting Naruto and Sakura. After we walk outside about an hour later, Kakashi whispers to me," How are you feeling, Naoko-chan?" I answer," Extremely tired, but that's all." He's calling me out on my lie from earlier. He observes me," Then why are you shivering?" I become defensive," I'm not shivering." My body shakes then Kakashi gives me a look and I know he saw it. I sigh," I'm not that sick Kakashi-sensei." He informs me," You used your Sharingan too long, which means you used up most of your chakra. Look at you, you can barely walk straight." I say," That only explains why I'm so tired." He crosses his arms," You have a fever because of the stress and the fatigue." I mumble," Fine you got me." He wonders," Maybe you should stay the night at the hospital." I look at him," I won't willingly." He replies," In this state, that won't matter much."

I glare at him for a moment then he offers," But if you promise to go home and rest, I won't make you." I nod," Thank you, Kakashi-sensei." He escorts me home then I walk inside," I'll come by in the morning to see if you kept your promise. Make sure your windows are closed, it looks like it might rain." I smile," I will, now go home and you get some rest, too." He laughs then walks off.

I go inside and change out of the black ops uniform. Finally, I lie down and try to fall asleep. My body doesn't want to accept the fact that it is tired. I try for a while longer to fall asleep, but soon give up. I get up and grab a book off of the bookshelf then sit down on my bed.


	24. Chapter 24

The next morning I'm still freezing cold and still tired. I get up and change into my normal clothes then grab a blanket. I wrap it around me then sit down at the table. I rest my head on my arms on the table.

A few minutes later I hear a knock on the door and Kakashi's voice," Naoko-chan?" I groan," Go away, Kakashi-sensei." Instead of leaving I hear the door open and footsteps in the hall. I hear Kakashi's breathing and can tell he is standing next to me. "Naoko-chan, I knew I should have made you stay at the hospital." I mumble," Wouldn't have mattered, couldn't fall asleep." He orders," Naoko-chan, look at me." I look up and he puts a hand on my forehead.

"If anything your fever has gotten worse and your eyes are bloodshot. Did you sleep at all?" I answer," None." He looks away from me trying to think. He jumps when I cough without warning. I cover my mouth with my hand till my coughing fit is over. I look at my hand with surprise. He sees my face and reaches for my hand to see. I pull away but it doesn't make a difference, his grip is too strong.

He sees the blood on my hand then calmly asks," When did you start feeling like this?" I can sense an undertone of panic but don't mention it. "The first night we made camp with Ryuu-san." He lets go of my hand," I should have known." I ask," Known what?" He's angry with himself," Ryuu-san knew what our real mission was from the beginning. He must have tried to hurt you." I ask," But how?" He asks," Where is your leg pouch from the mission?" I point," Behind you in the hallway."

I lay my head down on my arms again while he goes to get it then comes back. He pulls out the packet of herbs that I put in my drink that night. I watch as he dumps some in a cup then pours in a small amount of water. The water changes color when it touches the herbs. "Why is it doing that?" Kakashi tells me," Snake venom. Ryuu-san tried to poison you."

Half asleep I ask," Then why aren't I dead?" "You only drank a small sip of it," he sighs. I say," That would explain why Ryuu-san asked you if I was dead that morning. He tried to kill me." Kakashi nods," You need to go to the hospital for the antidote." I look at him," One problem." "What problem?" I mumble," I don't think I can walk." He sighs," You do look like you're about to pass out." He helps me stand then puts my arm around his shoulders to support my weight.

We walk outside and then he stops. He looks up at the roof then the road then at me. I see his dilemma. I comment," Rooftops are faster." He warns," You'll have to try to hang on though." I lean against him," I will." He jumps up to the roof carrying me on his back then continues on the rooftops until we reach the Konoha Hospital. Kakashi almost carries me in the emergency room, but doesn't.

Once he helps me inside I get put on a stretcher and he explains what's wrong. A medic-nin comes and gives me a shot of the antidote. I am assigned to stay overnight and get put in the same room as Sakura. After I am put in the room and everyone else leaves, Sakura asks me what happened. I explain," The second night on the mission Ryuu-san tried to poison me. He put snake venom in my drink." Sakura pauses," Then shouldn't you be…?" I reply," Dead? No, I only drank a small amount of it."

After we talk for a while another medic-nin comes in and gives me another shot. I ask what it is and why I have to have it. She tells me," It's something to make you sleep. Kakashi-san suggested we give it to you." She leaves and before I involuntarily fall asleep I ask Sakura," Sakura-chan, tomorrow could you please hit Kakashi-sensei for me?" She is surprised," Hit him?" I continue," Or something like it." She laughs," Sure Naoko-chan, go to sleep." I let the drugs work and fall unconscious.


	25. Chapter 25

The next morning I wake up to an empty hospital room. I stand up then decide that whether Kakashi agrees or not, I've had enough time in the hospital. I sit up and feel my arm start stinging. I roll up my sleeve and see the tattoo on my left arm. Tsunade must have done it while I was unconscious. After sneaking around my team and secretly visiting Tsunade-sama I am finally an ANBU Black op.

I put on my shoes then walk to the front desk and sign myself out. I walk home and luckily I don't see Kakashi anywhere along the way. Once I get home I go inside and sit down at the table. I rest my head on my arms and close my eyes. A quiet voice says," Still tired?" I mumble," I thought that door was locked." I hear Kakashi chuckle then say," It was, but the window wasn't." I say," I'll remember that next time." He says," Sakura-chan asked to train with me earlier today. She wanted to work on her close combat techniques." Out of the corner of my eye, I notice him staring at me accusingly.

I say," Oh, really? How'd that go?" He says," I let her get in a hit or two but overall I won easily." I say," I'll be sure to get her version of the training session later." He says," You wouldn't happen to have anything to do with her request would you?" I lift my head for a moment and say," Who me? Ask her to hit you?" He sees my fake surprise then says," Or something like it." I say," Hasn't anyone ever told you, eavesdropping is rude." He chuckles then says," Ahh, but accidentally overhearing something isn't." I say," Sure, so you just 'happened' to be sitting on the hospital roof, outside my window, 'accidentally' listening to everything Sakura-chan and I said?" He smiles then says," I suppose that's one way to put it."

I don't reply so he says," What were you planning on doing once you got home?" I say," I was planning on resting some then training with Shikamaru-kun." He says," Is that all?" I sadly look up at him for the first time during the conversation and say," Hai, now please, leave me be." I put my head back on my arms and hear him stand up.

**~Kakashi's Personal Thoughts~**

I see the hurt in her eyes. I stand up but hesitate between leaving and staying. I know she wants to be alone but I also know that she needs comforting. I say," I'll be back in an hour. I expect you to still be asleep when I return." I walk down the hall and outside.

If she thinks I'm really going to leave her when she is like this then maybe she is insane. I jump to the roof and pull out Makeout Paradise to pass the hour. After forty minutes I put away the book and jump down. I stop in front of her door and listen. Everything is silent so I open the door and walk inside. I quietly walk to her bedroom and see she's still sleeping as I told her to. I notice a folded piece of paper in her hand then see it has my name written on the front. I shake her trying to wake her up. As soon as I touch her she disappears in a poof of smoke.

I mutter," That girl is gunna get it when I find her…" I pick up the note and open it. It reads," Sorry Kakashi-sensei. I know you told me to take a nap but I wasn't too tired. I'm out training with Shikamaru-kun right now. If you are reading this then that means you must have found my doppelganger. Don't worry I'm not in any pain and feel fine. The antidote worked and I'll come home once Shikamaru-kun and I are finished."

I walk out of the room to the hall. As I pass the kitchen I leave the note on the table. Once I get outside I decide to wait for her to come back instead of searching for her. I sit beside the door and pull out Makeout Paradise again. After a while the sun begins to set and I begin to get drowsy. I keep catching myself almost nodding off. Eventually I give in and fall asleep.


	26. Chapter 26

I still can't believe I'm finished that quick. I've done lots of missions behind Kakashi's back by orders of Tsunade. I can't believe I've already done enough. I'm racing to the Hokage's office after leaving Kakashi a note and a doppelganger. Tsunade sent word that she wanted to speak with me about the ANBU.

Finally I reach the building and hurry to her office. I knock then walk inside. She says," That was fast Naoko-chan." I say," I ran the entire way." She smiles then tells me," You are now a true ANBU black op. All that is left it to notify your team leader." I say," Umm, Tsunade-sama…May I take care of telling Kakashi-sensei?" She says," Sure, and I see your favoring your left arm some. The tattoo will be sore for awhile but then it'll heal. Please, excuse me. Right now I have other things to attend to." I recognize the dismissal and say," Thank you."

I walk out and head to the river. Once I get there I lie down and look at the stars. After a few minutes I accidentally fall asleep. Hours later I sit up alert. I hear another leaf crunch. A deer steps out of the tree line then retreats after seeing me. I stand up and brush myself off. I need to go home and make sure Kakashi isn't too mad at me.

I stop when I see him sitting outside asleep with his book in his lap. I slip past him inside and get a blanket. I hear the door open and know that Sakura must be back. I glance out the window then climb through. I walk back over to Kakashi and put the blanket around him. I smile at how peaceful he looks then start back to the river. I need time to myself for a while. And I want time to think.

I wake up to a wonderful sunrise. I notice a blanket is around my shoulders and my book lying beside me. It seems that Naoko found me in the night. I stand up and put away the book. I walk to the door and knock. I hear Sakura yell from inside," Come in." I walk inside and sit at the table waiting for one of the girls to greet me. After a moment Sakura does. She walks in without looking at me saying," Well, it's about time you got-." She sees it's me and stops short. She says," Oh, hello Kakashi-sensei." I say," Hello Sakura-chan. Where is Naoko-chan?" She looks guiltily at the floor then says," Umm, well I don't really know." I ask," What do you mean?" She says," She never came home last night. I got back and saw you outside. I was going to get you a blanket instead of waking you up. But when I came back outside you already had one. I just went back inside then went to sleep." I say," I'll find Naoko-chan. I need you to get Naruto-kun and meet me at the gate of the city for training." She says," Hai, Sensei," and leaves.

I follow her outside then walk to the river bank. I was right, she is here. I jump across the opposite bank beside her. She is lying on her back looking up at the clouds. She smiles up at me then says," I was just about to start back home." I thought she gave up the thoughts of going back to the Sound village. I say," Do I need to find more sleeping powder?" Her smile fades and she says," I meant Konoha. I no longer think of the Sound village as my home."

I misunderstood her. I say," Then why don't you stop stealing Shikamaru-kun's hobby and come train for a while." She smiles again and says," Sure, Kakashi-sensei." I hold out a hand and she takes it so I help her up. We start walking towards the gate and she says," Now I know why Shikamaru-kun likes to watch the clouds." I say," Why?" and she says," It's relaxing, I fell asleep last night." I say," So that's why you never came home." She says," I did after I woke up, but it was really late. I saw you sitting outside so I got you a blanket then decided to go back to the river. I watched the stars until I feel asleep again."

I say," You didn't mind being alone out there?" She says," No. I'm kind of like Shikamaru-kun, I find it peaceful. I don't get restless like Naruto-kun would." I smile then say," I can think of another person you're a lot alike, too." She smiles and we keep walking until we reach the gate. We stop when we see Naruto and Sakura waiting for us.


	27. Chapter 27

I wonder where we'll be training today. And what Kakashi will have us doing. I walk up to Sakura and stand beside her. Kakashi tells us to follow him into the woods. We all do and after we walk about a mile he stops us. He says," Today you will be practicing close combat." We look at each other nervously then back to Kakashi. He smiles at the looks then says," You will fight against Team 10. You will not leave your assigned opponents. Naruto-kun you will be against Ino-chan." Naruto says," But I don't want to fight her!" Kakashi says," Too bad. Naoko-chan, you will fight Shikamaru-kun, and Sakura-chan you will fight Choji-kun." We look around for Team 10 but they're no where in sight. We all turn back to Kakashi with questioning looks.

He says," Keep walking and you'll find them." Naruto and Sakura start walking away from Kakashi and I follow a few steps behind. I see a trip wire across the path where Naruto and Sakura are about to walk over. I stop and look back at Kakashi. He isn't there anymore. It doesn't matter I just found the trap and I know how to avoid it.

I jump into the branches above me and wait. I watch as Sakura and Naruto both step on the string. A moment later I see Shikamaru, Ino, and Choji all sneaking into the clearing. I see Shikamaru looking around for something. He has noticed I'm missing from my group. So their leader told them their opponents too.

I pull out a kunai and stick an exploding seal on it. I make a doppelganger then have it jump down behind the tree and throw the kunai while I jump to another spot. The kunai lands right at Shikamaru's feet and the competition begins. He throws a shuriken where my doppelganger is then sees the seal. He tries to run out of range of the blast and doesn't make it. He gets far enough away that it doesn't hurt him too much and then returns closer to where I am.

I make my doppelganger drop to its stomach and the shuriken flies over its head. I see Ino step out in front of Naruto. Naruto is surprised by her and casually watches what she does. To both of our surprise she simply sits down in front of him. Naruto is completely clueless but I know exactly what she's going to do. She starts the signs for her signature mind transfer technique.

I have to decide fast: do I help Naruto and give up my position or leave him and have a better chance against Shikamaru? I know that if I can get Ino to miss her target it will take her a minute to get back to her body giving Naruto enough time to trap her. I don't want Ino close to my teammate and I know that Shikamaru won't really hurt me. I guess I just made up my mind.

I throw myself at Naruto and try to ignore the shuriken whizzing over my head from Shikamaru. I hit him just as Ino finishes her jutsu. We hit the ground together. I know Ino didn't hit me but I don't know if she accurately hit her intended target or not. Naruto sits up then looks at me and says," What was that for!" I say," She was going to posses you! Go find her body and trap her before she returns to it!"

I jump up and slip silently towards Shikamaru. I hear footsteps close in front of me and quickly use the transformation jutsu to become a stump that is sitting next to me. I see Shikamaru walk right past me. His footsteps fade away then I drop the illusion.

I start walking after him then suddenly I can't move. I stop struggling and say," I guess this means you won." I feel myself turn around and face Shikamaru. I smile and say," I always seem to forget about how much you like to sneak up behind people." He says," This is one out of three. I wonder who'll win the other battles." I say," It's anyone's guess, but I don't think this battle is over just yet." He says," How could it not be? You're trapped in my shadow." I just smile at him as I hear the sound of a kunai slice the air. It nicks his arm as I wanted it to and he stops his jutsu as another flies toward him.

My doppelganger walks into view and he throws a kunai at it as I transform again. I remember Sakura once telling me that Shikamaru was a genius. I don't doubt it but I wish he could rub off on Naruto some. I glance over at Ino and Naruto. Ino is sitting on Naruto's back smiling. Well that's one battle lost. Hopefully Sakura and I can both win our battles. I want to conserve my chakra so I wait until I know that Shikamaru is standing beside me then I transform back. I wait for him to turn around and when he does my victory is clear.

I watch him look up at my face, look into my eyes, and see his expression change to peacefulness. He asks," How are you doing this?" Just to check I ask," What are you seeing?" He says," Clouds. I'm standing in a field looking up at the clouds." I say," Good, then I am doing it right." He says," What are you doing though?" I say," I'm using my Sharingan eyes. It's the Mangekyo." He says," But how do you know how to use it? I thought you only discovered it recently."

I say," That's true but I heard Kakashi-sensei talking about this and I wanted to see if I could do it." He says," But how will making people see clouds help in battle?" I say," It's like a dream. I can make it seem like hours or days or even years to the person. I can make them see almost anything. Beautiful or frightening things."

I change the scene to we are both standing in the same field but in the middle of a huge thunderstorm. He says," I think I understand it." I switch back to the clouds and he asks me," Can you hurt people with this." I say," I'm not certain but I think so. I can make their brains think that they're being hurt but once I release them from the dream they won't have a cut on them. After I release them they'll still feel the pain fading just like if they had been really hurt. I can change anything in the dreams too, not just time." He asks," Like what?" I say," I can take away or change any of your five senses."

I pull myself out of the dream and turn to check on Sakura and Choji. Sakura just lured Choji into a trap with a bag of chips. I see her watch as Choji realizes his mistake. He already has the chips and he tries to run but Sakura stops him. She holds a kunai against his back but he doesn't seem to care. He stands there munching on his chips contently.

I go back to the dream just as Shikamaru asks," Why did you put me in this dream?" I say," I knew you like to watch the clouds and this was the first thing I thought of." He says," Does Kakashi-sensei know you're doing this?" I sigh then say," By now, probably." He says," Why can I still hear you and the others?" I say," Because there's no point in taking away your hearing. Besides I'd much rather talk to you than just stand here." He says," Are you keeping the time the same too?" I say," Hai and I think I hear Kakashi-sensei and Asuma-sensei coming." Shikamaru says," Me too."

I hear them clearly now. Kakashi and Asuma walk into the clearing together now silent. Asuma goes to see how Ino and Naruto did as Kakashi walks over to Shikamaru and I. I whisper," Here comes Kakashi-sensei." Kakashi says," I see you won Naoko-chan, very good." I look up at him and ask," You're not mad at me for using the Mangekyo?" He says," No I'm not." I hang my head for the lecture to come and say," Sorry, Sensei." He laughs then says," You're not in trouble."

Shikamaru interrupts our conversation by saying," Umm, you wanna let me out of this thing, I'm getting kinda bored?" I laugh then say," Oops! Sorry, Shikamaru-kun." I stop the jutsu and see his eyes refocus to everything. He says," Thanks. After watching the same clouds pass by over and over again I was getting really bored in there." We laugh then I say," Sure thing."

He walks off to meet Asuma then Kakashi and I follow. Sakura and Choji are laughing with each other by the time we reach them. I can tell there are no hard feelings between those two. But Naruto and Ino are another matter. Naruto is yelling that Ino cheated and Asuma is trying to sort it all out. Kakashi and I walk over and listen in on their "debate". Naruto says," You didn't win!" Ino yells back," Hai I did!" He yells," No you didn't! You cheated!" She says," How did I cheat?" He says," You used your jutsu!" She yells at him," We were allowed to!" He says," No we couldn't!" I say," Naruto-kun, Kakashi-sensei never said we couldn't use jutsu." He says," He didn't?" and I tell him," Sorry, no."

He hangs his head and walks off. Asuma and Kakashi tell each other goodbye and our team leaves. On the way back to the village Kakashi tells us we have to go see Tsunade. We ask why and he says," Because that training session was also a competition. The winner is going to be assigned a very highly ranked mission. And you three won two out of three matches, which means you get it."

We continue walking to the Hokage's office then finally walk past the front doors. After we're inside I notice Kakashi's shirt is bloodstained. I whisper," Kakashi-sensei, what happened to your arm?" He replies," A piece of wood cut me when your kunai exploded." I say," Sorry Kakashi-sensei, I should have been more careful." He says," No it's my fault; I shouldn't have been so close."

Before I have time to argue we are walking into Tsunade's office. She says," So you have decided to give your team this mission, Kakashi-sensei?" Kakashi says," Hai, but I think you should explain it to them." She says," Of course." and smiles at Kakashi then turns to us. She says," It seems that the ANBU Black ops' ranks keep getting thinner. Again they need your help. You will all be disguised as black ops just as you were last time. Your names will also be the same as they were last time. This time your mission is to track a member of the Akatsuki. I want to know where he is heading. Once he reaches his destination, you all are to report back to me. This is a very high ranked mission. I expect you to do your very best." She smiles warmly at me then dismisses us to prepare.


	28. Chapter 28

Just like last time we all go change, but this time it feels different for me. I know that this uniform is truly mine, now that I've earned it. She also gave us small bottles of ink so that we may put the tattoos on our arms. The others aren't allowed to get the real tattoos until they earn them. Sakura and I quickly take turns dressing. I go first then let Sakura.

While Sakura is changing I get out the ink and make it look like I painted on the tattoo. I don't want anyone to know that I'm part of the black ops just yet. I know I'll have to tell Kakashi soon though. Once Sakura is finished we help each other put on our arm protectors. Finally we are completely finished. We walk out to meet Naruto and Kakashi but only Naruto is waiting for us.

A minute later Kakashi walks out of the Hokage's office. He says," We are heading towards the Land of the Mist again. We should find the man near the border." Sakura says," Sensei, who exactly are we tracking?" He says," We're tracking Hoshigaki Kisame. He is a former Kirigakure Shinobi. He's an outlaw wanted by the Land of Water for assassination among other things." We begin walking towards the gate and our mission begins. We are all wearing our cloaks and our masks.

Just as we pass under the gate it begins to snow. Naruto and Sakura are in front and Kakashi and I are behind them. Sakura says," Sensei, look!" We all look back at the village and see everything is covered in a blanket of white. I say," It looks beautiful." Naruto says," So does this!" Sakura, Kakashi, and I turn around just in time to get hit by snowballs. Kakashi dodges his laughing, but Sakura and I aren't so fortunate. We both get hit right in the face.

We turn to look at each other then burst out laughing. As we both brush the snow off ourselves Kakashi says," We need to keep moving if we're going to make it to catch up with Kisame-san before he leaves the Land of the Mist." We keep walking then I ask," Kakashi-san, how long do we have to catch up with Kisame-san?" He says," Two days." I whisper," I thought Kisame-san was S ranked in the bingo book." Kakashi says," I know, he is." I say," Then why are we being assigned this. Don't get me wrong, I'm glad about this but it doesn't make sense." He says," We did so well capturing Ryuu-san that the Hokage thinks you three are ready for high ranked missions." I say," Ok, Kakashi-san," and keep walking.

We all travel for the entire day and into the night. Finally, we stop and make camp so that we can sleep some. Kakashi makes a fire while Naruto gets firewood. After the fire is blazing we all pitch out tents near each other. We lie down and try to sleep for a few short hours. I wake up earlier than we are supposed to and can't fall back asleep. I lay there silent and listen to all the night sounds. I hear someone sigh and I sit up. I crawl out of the tent and look around.

Kakashi looks over at me and says," Sorry Kaiya-chan. I didn't mean to startle you." I say," It's alright, tochan." He asks," Tochan? You've never called me that before." I say," You treat me like I'm your daughter, can I call you tochan?" He chuckles and says," What about what everyone will think once we get back to the village?" I say," They'll think you call me Kaiya-chan because you've grown used to calling me that on the mission and they'll just think that I think of you as my tochan." He smiles at my logic and says," Alright, Kaiya-chan. It's a deal, but no calling me that until we get home." I say," Deal, Kakashi-sensei."

We both quietly laugh then he says," You need to go back to sleep." I say," I can't, I've tried." He says," You're not tired?" I say," Hai I am, but I can't sleep. What about you?" He says," I can't sleep either." I say," Have you encountered Kisame-san before?" He says," Hai, if we somehow get discovered by him, here is a tip. Stay away from his sword's blade. It's like sharkskin and will cut you to ribbons." I say," Thanks for your tip." I wrap myself in my cloak tighter. It is still snowing and the cold seems to seep up into my bones. I move closer to the fire trying to get warmer.

We end up talking until time to get up then we wake up Sakura and Naruto. After we put out the fire, pack up our tents, and get our masks back on we move out again. A few hours later we reach the edge of the Land of the Mist. Kakashi stops us in the snow covered woods just outside the border. He does the hand signs then calls up Pakkun to help track Kisame.

We wait for almost an hour then Pakkun tells us Kisame is on the move. We track him for the rest of the day until he finally stops to make camp. Kakashi tells us to do the same while Pakkun watches to see if Kisame leaves in the night. Everyone eats then all but Pakkun goes to sleep.


	29. Chapter 29

The next morning we all wake up and put out the fire then wait for Kisame to start moving again. While we wait Sakura, Naruto, and I have a snowball fight to pass the time. Eventually Kisame does leave and we are right behind him. We wind up tracking him across a fast moving river and getting soaked in the process. We almost don't make it across. We don't have time to dry so we try to ignore the cold. About an hour later we are almost completely dry again. Around lunch time we are only a few miles away from the border to the Land of the Waves when Kisame stops. We wait for two hours but he doesn't move again. We start to close the gap trying to see what he is up to. After we get close enough we see a worn path leading up to a small building.

We carefully try to get closer but Naruto falls for the same trap team 10 used. He trips the thread and we quickly hide as two guards rush out of hiding. The first says," I don't see anything…it must have just been a snow hare." The second man says," Probably, but remember what the boss said, "If you see someone follow them". Finally they disappear again then we leave.

Once we are a little farther away Kakashi gets rid of Pakkun since we aren't tracking anymore. Finally we head back home to Konoha with a location for Tsunade. The temperature seems to keep dropping. We walk a few miles then stop for a late lunch. It still hasn't stopped snowing. We take off our masks and sit close together because of the cold.

I ask Kakashi," Kakashi-san, how cold do you think the river will be now?" Before he can answer Naruto says," It's so cold, it'll probably be frozen!" Sakura says," The water is moving too fast to freeze." Kakashi says," It won't be frozen but most likely it'll be colder and faster." I say," How are we going to get across this time?" He says," I still haven't thought of a safer way then trying to swim like last time." I drop the subject then pick up my mask. I brush the snow off of it then put it back on.

A few moments later the others do the same with theirs. We stand up and keep moving towards the river. Two hours later we reach the river. Kakashi was right it is much faster. Naruto walks to the edge and carelessly sticks his hand in the water. He yowls and pulls it out fast. He is trying to rub some warmth back into it as he says," That is a million times colder then this morning!" Kakashi says," I think I know how we can to this. Michi-chan you'll be first." She says," What do you need me to do?" He says," When I yell, I want you to jump in the river. I'm going to create a wave that will push you across the other bank. Try to keep your head above the water."

She walks to the water's edge and waits. I watch as Kakashi does a strange sequence of signs then a wave begins to form. He yells," Now, Michi-chan!" She jumps out as far as she can and is swept across. She pulls herself out of the water onto the snowy bank, shivering. Next Kakashi has Naruto stand at the edge like Sakura. Just when a wave begins to form a kunai blade flies past my arm. I turn and look as the two guards walk out of the tree line.

Kakashi yells," Jump, Sora-kun!" Naruto jumps out into the water then Sakura helps him out. Kakashi says," Sora-kun, Michi-chan! Head for the place we made camp last time! We'll meet you there." I pull out four shuriken while Kakashi takes out a kunai. We both give our attackers a once over then I say," How do you want to do this?" He says," How about like with Shikamaru-kun?" I say," Wonderful idea." Kakashi disappears in a puff of smoke. The two guards look around for him.

I start to move and that refocuses they're attention back on me. One says," One should be easy enough to deal with." They both smile menacingly. I do what no true ANBU Black op is supposed to. I throw back my hood then they laugh as my hair falls to my shoulders. The other says," Well, well. Look what we have here. It's a little girl."

I move my mask to the side of my face so that I have perfect vision. I smile as they look at my face then realize who I am like. These two have definitely dealt with Itachi before. Itachi is the only other person who these idiots might have ever met who could do this. I throw them into pitch black. I take away their hearing but keep the time the same. I say," Kakashi-san would you finish this." I hear a thud behind me but then I see Kakashi land between the two guards. He finishes them with a kunai to the heart.

I close my eyes when he does and end the dream. I turn to see what landed behind me and get a surprise. It's another guard. I yell," Kakashi-san!" I throw the four shuriken as the guard throws kunai blades at me. The guard ducks under the flying weapons straight for me. I see the chakra in his hands. He is obviously a trained medic-nin.

He aims for my throat and I don't have time to dodge it. I feel some of my muscles near my throat seem to be cut. I jump a few feet back but the river is only a foot behind me now. I'm gasping for breath. I see him smile and start to close the distance. He pulls out a kunai just as Kakashi jumps in front of him.

I drop to my knees trying to get oxygen into my lungs. Another Kakashi lands is in front of me. He has chakra in his hands too. He touches near my throat and I can finally breathe again. The other Kakashi stabs the guard but the guard moves and the kunai only pierces his arm. The guard brings up a sword that was on his back. He swings it over his head slicing Kakashi.


	30. Chapter 30

Suddenly, I'm being thrown backwards into the raging river. Just before I go underwater I hear Kakashi say," Hold your breath." He tries to keep an arm around my waist but the water wrenches me away from him. Right when I think I can't hold my breath any longer my head breaks the surface. I grab a breath then the rapids pull me under again. I feel something brush my leg. I grab it then realize its Kakashi's hand. He grips my hand tight and we ride out the rest of the rapids.

I keep getting slammed into rocks and tree limbs and I assume Kakashi is too. Finally we reach the end of that rapid and I try to make it to the bank before we reach another. I pull Kakashi with me until we reach a spot where we can get out. Here the tree line is right on the water's edge and I have to make my way through all the roots. I pull myself up onto a root that is sticking up out of the water. I pull Kakashi up with me then notice he is unconscious.

I quickly pull both of us onto the hard ground. I stand him up and get his arm over my shoulders. I support his weight on my shoulders and back as I head farther into the tree line. Once it seems a safe distance from the river I stop and lay him down. By now both of our cloaks are close to dry. I take off his ANBU mask then lay it beside him. He needs to be able to breath better so I take off his other mask too. I've never seen him without his mask and his eye doesn't bother me. I take his cloak and wrap it tighter around him. I pull off my cloak too and lay it over him. This should keep him warm until I get back with firewood.

I put my mask back on in case I should meet our friend again. After a few minutes of searching I finally have enough wood for a decent fire that should last through the night. I race back to Kakashi then start the fire. All it takes is one spark and a minute later there is a dancing fire. I move Kakashi closer to it then sit beside him. I'm too tired to set up our tents. I lean back against a tree and wait for Kakashi to wake up.

I wake up covered with a thin blanket of snow instead of underwater. I wonder how long I was out and where I am. I look around me and see a simmering fire. The river isn't in sight and I can't hear it either. Kaiya had to have carried me here. I must have hit my head harder than I thought. I reach up and touch the back of my head. It isn't bleeding but I still have a bump from that rock.

I feel something hard pressed up against my other side. I turn my head and look. It's Kaiya. She doesn't have on her mask or her cloak. I sit up and the snow falls off me, along with a cloak other than mine. I understand now. She tried to get me warm first then she fell asleep after starting a fire.

She looks blue. I reach out and touch her arm, she feels cold too. While she was asleep she must have gotten cold enough that she moved beside me for the body heat. I take her cloak and put it between her and the ground. I wrap it around her body then put mine around her too. I start the fire again then move her close.

After this is done I sit beside her and pull her up against me. She must be exhausted after carrying me away from the river. I'll let her sleep for awhile longer, she deserves it. I remember that she had to paint on the tattoo. I glance at her arm expecting to see that the water washed it away. Instead it is still there. It looks red around the edges of the symbol too. That Tsunade! She let Kaiya become an ANBU Black op without telling me! I should have seen it! That was why Kaiya was always disappearing for long periods of time then suddenly reappearing! I suppose I shouldn't be mad with them though. Kaiya probably asked Tsunade if she could tell me herself then we were assigned this mission.

It's too late to have any say in the matter. The least I can do is congratulate her. Of course I plan on doing more than that. I look back down at her. She doesn't look as blue anymore and seems that she is fully asleep. My book is completely ruined so there's no use in keeping it. I toss it in the fire and watch as sparks fly up. It's almost morning but Naruto and Sakura won't leave the old campsite until tonight so we have enough time. I pull my mask back up then readjust my headband.

I think back through every thing that happened. The third guard is probably dead. There is no way that he could have made it back to his friends before he bled to death. I got in another kunai after the one in his arm so he didn't really have a chance. I hear Kaiya move and I look down at her. She moves more and I ask," Kaiya-chan, are you awake now?" She opens her eyes and blinks a few times letting her eyes adjust. She doesn't try to move but says," How's your head?" I say," Doesn't even hurt anymore." She says," Are you still cold?" I say," Not really, but you still look a little blue." She says," I'm freezing."

I rub my hand over her arm trying to create warmth from the friction. She most likely has hypothermia which means she needs to get warm fast. After about twenty minutes of sitting by the fire she says she's warm enough and I get up. I put out the fire and pick up both our ANBU masks. She gives me back my cloak then we both put them on. I hand her mask to her then help her stand up. We put on our masks then put up our hoods. She's a little disoriented and I can tell she's somewhat dizzy too. I put her arm over my shoulders and put my arm around her waist to keep her from falling.

We start heading for the place where we need to meet Naruto and Sakura. I ask Kaiya," Don't you need to repaint your tattoo?" She says," Umm, well…" I say," It's alright, Kaiya-chan. I already know." She says," I'm sorry Kakashi-san. I was going to tell you but then we were assigned this mission." I say," Congratulations, by that way. You are the first member of this team to become an ANBU black op." She say," Other than you that is." I smile then say," Hai, other than me." I pause for a moment then ask," How long?" She says," Since the night I spent in the hospital after Ryuu-san tried to kill me. I didn't know if I should say anything then because Tsunade-sama hadn't talked to me yet." I ask," When did she talk to you?" She says," The night I went to the river. Right before the morning Team 10 and us trained together."


	31. Chapter 31

An hour before noon we reach the edge of their camp. By now Kaiya has regained her balance and doesn't need my help to walk. I see a fire with the two sitting beside it. I walk up to them with Kaiya following me. I say," Yo!" They both jump up and Sakura says," Kakashi-san!" I say," So what happened here last night?" Sakura blushes and Naruto says," Hey! Nothing happened!" Kaiya looks up at me. She looks like a confused puppy dog.

I say," Put out that fire and let's get home. We might be able to make it before sundown if we hurry." Naruto puts out the fire then they both put their masks back on and we leave again.

Kakashi was right. We're only a mile away from the village and it isn't even dark yet. I'm still cold and I think Kakashi might expect I'm lying. We keep walking and it keeps snowing. Kakashi says the temperature is dropping quickly and that we need to get to the village. Kakashi had us running most of the way and he ended up having to carry me. Naruto was looking a little wobbly too but avoided letting Kakashi see.

I still can't run because I'll get very dizzy and pass out. I did the first time we ran. That gave the others quite a scare. Finally we reach the gate. Everything about Konoha is even more beautiful than when we left. Not one thing doesn't have a cover of snow over it. We all pull back our hoods and everyone except Kakashi moves our masks to get a better look.

All Naruto can manage to say is wow. Sakura says," It's like a white wonderland." I have to agree with her, it does look like a wonderland. The sun makes the snow sparkle as we walk past the gate. Kakashi says," All right. This mission is over. I want all of you to go home and get some rest. No training until I say." Sakura and Naruto run off and I start to walk away too. Something snags the back of my cloak and I stop. Kakashi says," And where are you going?" I say," The river." He tells me," No, you're going home." I say," I am home, tochan." He sighs then says," You're going to your house, Kaiya-chan." I say," I want to go to the river." He says," You might have hypothermia. You don't need to be out when it's this cold until it's definite you don't." I say," I'm not cold."

I start to walk off again but he picks me up and throws me over his shoulder. I pound on his back and yell at him but he won't put me down. He starts walking towards my house and ignores me until I stop yelling. Finally he gets to my house and stops then pulls me off his back into his arms.

He smiles when he sees I fell asleep. He says," Kaiya-chan, your home." I lean in towards him then mumble half asleep," Your warm, tochan." He chuckles then carries me inside. He takes me to my room and lays me down. He takes off my mask and headband then sets them beside the bed. He covers me up with the blanket then goes to find another.

He stops in the kitchen to take off his cloak and mask. After he finds a blanket he comes back to my room. He covers me up with that blanket then leaves. He walks to the kitchen and puts his cloak back on then his ANBU mask. He walks out of the house then goes to check in with Tsunade before heading home himself.

I wake up with the sense that I'm not alone. I still have on my ANBU Black ops uniform so I slip out a kunai blade. I sit up then slowly creep towards the kitchen. I walk past the doorway to the kitchen then relax. It's only Kakashi. I put away the kunai then he says," Good to see you fully awake." I notice he's still in his ANBU Black ops uniform too. I say," What are you doing here, tochan?" He smiles then says," I want you to come with me to visit Tsunade-sama." I ask," Why do you want me to see Tsunade-sama?" He says," I want her to see if there is still any damage to your trachea. That last guard was a trained-." I cut him off saying," He was trained as a medic, I know." Kakashi asks," How did you know?" I say," The chakra in his hands and only someone who was trained could have done that in the midst of a battle." Kakashi says," Still I want Tsunade-sama to see if I healed it correctly." I say," I don't have anything better to do so alright."

He smiles and we head out for the Hokage's office. Once there we knock then walk inside. She turns around and asks," What do you need Kakashi-san?" He says," Kaiya-chan was wounded during the mission. A guard trained as a medic used the chakra scalpel to cut her intercostal muscles. I healed them but I don't know if I did a correct job." Tsunade says," And you would like me to make sure?" He says," Hai." She walks over to me and says," You might not be able to breathe for a moment. If you can't don't worry, it will only last for a minute." She manipulates her chakra into her hand then reaches up to my neck. I feel her hand touch me then I can't breathe.

I don't panic but wait. Just like she said, a moment later I can breath fine again. She lets go and smiles at me. She turns to Kakashi and says," You did it perfectly, Kakashi-san." He says," Thank you, Tsunade-sama." She asks," I am curious though. Why did you say Kaiya-chan?" She gives him a sly grin and he says," I've gotten used to calling her that. It's my nickname for her." Tsunade smiles then says," Alight. Goodbye Kakashi-san, Naoko-chan."

Kakashi and I walk out then start aimlessly walking around. Kakashi says," I'm curious, Kaiya-chan. Did you carry me to the campsite after you escaped the river?" I say," Hai, I did." He asks," How did you manage it?" I smile and say," I'm not a little girl anymore tochan. I'm almost sixteen now." He smiles then teases," Forgive me, I keep forgetting you're now almost as old as I am." I say," Hey! I'm not that old just yet. Let's not rush things." He laughs then says," I couldn't agree more."

We keep walking silently around the town then Kakashi asks," I've been wondering, why did you take off both my masks on the mission?" I say," You needed to breathe better. Both of my adopted parents were medic-nin. They taught me a few things just in case anything was to ever happen to me." He says," You still miss them." It doesn't sound like a question but like a statement. I say," Hai, they were like my parents to me. I still love them and miss them." I hang my head as we walk. After a minute he asks," Do you ever want to live with them again?" I say," No." I see his surprise and then smile and I say," Let me explain. They were like two good friends who happened to also be taking care of me…but I've found my real family. My team is my family, now. I love Team 7." He smiles and says," And we love you."

We keep talking for a while then we get to the question I was hoping he wouldn't ask. He asks," So…umm, what's up with you and Naruto-kun lately? You two have been avoiding each other in town." I say," He tries to always be close and wants to know everything. He's kinda…" Kakashi says," Clingy?" I say," Hai, and overprotective." He says," He's lost people in his life. He just doesn't want to lose you." I say," We've all lost people in our lives. Naruto-kun lost his parents, Sakura-chan lost Sasuke-kun, and you've lost almost everyone dear to you."

He says," And you've lost your parents and you're brothers." I say," I still have one brother I haven't given up on yet." He smiles and says," Good."

I say," I think Naruto-kun might not ever forgive me for ignoring him." Kakashi says," Oh, I think he will." I ask," What do you know that I don't? Hmm, tochan?" He laughs then says," Plenty, but I will tell you Naruto-kun seems to have an eye for Hinata-chan." I say," Hinata-chan would be glad to hear that." Kakashi looks at me curiously and I say," Oh, come on. Are you saying you have no idea what I'm talking about?" He says," I'm afraid not." I say," Hinata-chan's liked Naruto-kun since forever. Unlike me that is." Kakashi says," What do you mean?"

I say," Ever since you three found me; I've been like an outcast. Hardly anyone will even acknowledge me." He says," But you're overlooking a few people. Tsunade-sama thinks you have great potential for whatever you chose to do. Naruto-kun and Sakura-chan are both glad that you're part of the team. You have friends like Shikamaru-kun. You have a brother who loves you…and I'm glad you're a part of my life, too." I smile then say," Thanks, that means a lot to me." He says," I only said it because it's true, Kaiya-chan."


	32. Chapter 32

We talk for a little longer than I go to find Sakura while Kakashi goes to catch up with some of the other Jonin. I look many different places but I can't find Sakura. I walk to the river and sit by the water. I think about the mission and the things I could have done differently. I try to think of things I can improve on and things that it wouldn't have made a difference. After I think through the mission I start thinking about today.

I sit there on the bank thinking for almost thirty minutes. I look up and smile. I'm happy here. I stand up then start walking back to my house. Half way home Sakura runs up to me. She says," Naoko-chan, Kakashi-sensei wants to see us." I say," When?" She says," Right now. We have to hurry." She grabs my hand and pulls me down the road. She leads me to a corner of a small shop where Naruto and Kakashi are waiting.

Naruto looks excited but also seems somewhat sad too. Kakashi says," Tsunade-sama has gotten word that there is a possible assassination plot being formed by the Land of Sand. She has assigned Naruto-kun and I to go there and be her eyes and ears." I say," I understand. How long is the mission going to last?" He sighs then says," At the least…one year." Sakura says," Sensei…" She looks down and I ask," I suppose you have already asked someone to let us train with their team?" He says," Hai, you both seem able to get along with Team 10 so I've asked Asuma-san. Meet him tomorrow at noon at the river bank." I say," Hai, tochan." I hear a soft sob from Sakura. She is looking down and crying. I take her hand and give it a gentle squeeze. She returns the pressure then Kakashi says," Sakura-chan, don't cry. We'll be back soon. Till then I want you to kick Team 10's butt then tell me all the stories when we get back."

She manages a small laugh then Kakashi says," Naruto-kun, why don't you go say goodbye to Sakura-chan." Naruto takes her other hand and leads her farther away. Kakashi turns to me and says," Stay out of trouble while we're gone." I say," Don't I always." He smiles sadly and I look down as a tear falls down my cheek. He puts a finger under my chin making me look up. He wipes away the tear and says," Shh, don't cry Kaiya-chan. I'll be back soon." I say," A year isn't soon, sensei." He says," I know. Just remember no matter what, I'll be back." I say," Promise?" He says," I promise. I'll even come see you first." I say," Even before Tsunade-sama?" He smiles and says," Even before Tsunade-sama." I ask," When are you leaving?" He says," We have to be at the gate in ten minutes."

I close my eyes and push back the tears. I open them and he says," Naruto-kun and I have to go now." I say," I know." He leans down and kisses my forehead. He says," I'll miss you. Goodbye, musume." He takes a step back as Naruto and Sakura come back over. Naruto looks at me and says," Goodbye, Naoko-chan. Try not to get hurt while we're gone." I say," I wouldn't dream of it Naruto-kun. Besides who'd carry me to the hospital?" He smiles and I can't help but smile some too. He says," Take care of yourselves." I say," We will. Goodbye, Naruto-kun."

He turns and two of the boys in my life walk away down a winding road, leaving only goodbyes, promises, and memories behind. As they walk away I say," You know, Kakashi-sensei isn't really a perverted jerk." Without looking away from their shrinking figures, Sakura says," And Naruto-kun really just wants you to be safe." I watch as they walk around a corner and out of sight. I say," Our boys will be back soon." She says," I know, but it's the waiting that I don't think I can bare." I say," We'll get through this. It'll get easier after time." She says," It will?" I say," At least I hope so." We walk home and both watch out our windows as the sun sets in the sky. Finally we both lie down and eventually fall asleep.


	33. Chapter 33

I race down the road towards the front gate. There is another cart in the road blocking my path. I jump up to the rooftops and continue until I am closer to the gate. I jump down and run. I stop beside the gate and a moment later Sakura joins me. Today it will have been a year exactly. Sakura and I have been taking shifts throughout the day but it's getting late. It is almost seven o'clock so we're joining our last shifts. We stand by the gate until eight thirty then watch as the sun sets. I look at Sakura and say," Not yet, but they'll come home soon." She sighs and we walk home together. Eventually we both fall asleep. The next morning we make ourselves continue our daily routines and then train with team 10. That night we make ourselves come to the realization that our boys won't be back for awhile. We lay down after talking with each other and eventually fall asleep.


	34. Chapter 34

A little over a year has passed since Kakashi and Naruto left for the Land of Sand. Spring just arrived a week ago and Sakura and I are ditching Asuma's training to lie down at the river and talk. Sakura says," Naoko-chan, they should have been back by now. Do you think…?" I say," No Sakura-chan, nothing happened to them. I'm sure of it." She says," I hope your right."

We lie silent for a moment then I say," I wonder what Asuma-sensei will do to us for skipping?" She says," I don't know, but I doubt anything too bad. He might send Shikamaru-kun to look for us though." I say," He might." I look up at the clouds and watch them for a few minutes. I start thinking again and close my eyes.

A lot has changed since Kakashi and Naruto left. Sakura has become an ANBU Black op too. We've both been learning from Tsunade about training as medic-nin. Sakura seems very interested but it doesn't sound like something I want to do. I can heal minor injuries but Sakura spends so much time with Tsunade that she can heal broken bones. I keep telling her she should become a medic-nin but she doesn't want to make that decision yet.

I hear a twig snap behind us in the woods. I ignore it. It's probably just Shikamaru and he won't tell Asuma that he found us. I lie there and listen with my eyes closed. I open my eyes in alarm as I hear something running straight for Sakura and I. We both jump to the side and the thing almost runs into the river.

I'm being engulfed in a hug along with Sakura. We both pull away then hug the person tighter. It's Naruto! If Naruto's here then Kakashi must be back too. We let each other go and I ask," Naruto-kun, where's Kakashi-sensei?" He smiles then I hear a voice behind me say," Right here, Kaiya-chan." I turn around and smile as Kakashi walks out of the tree line. He walks over to the three of us and gives Sakura and me a hug. He says," Shouldn't you two be with Team 10?" I say," Umm, it's a possibility." He smiles and we all sit down.

We talk and trade stories for a few hours. It is almost four o'clock but we don't seem to notice. We're all lying down beside each other. I have my head on Kakashi's chest while Sakura and Naruto are using my legs for pillows. Naruto and Sakura are talking quietly and so are Kakashi and I. I say," I've missed the two of you." He says," We've missed you too." I say," Finally, two of my boys are home." He says," I have a feeling the third will be back for a visit soon." I say," I hope so."

He asks," Did you have any exciting missions while I was gone?" I say," There was one. I had to use my Sharingan and I didn't have enough chakra to do any other jutsu. I used up so much that I couldn't move. While I waited for someone to find me I built some of my chakra back up. Finally someone did but he was the one wanting to kill us. Fortunately, Sakura-chan got to me almost exactly when he did."

He asks," Then what?" I say," Sakura-chan put a kunai through his hand and I used the rest of my chakra to use the chakra scalpel. I cut his muscles in his leg so he couldn't walk." Kakashi says," You used up all your chakra? Kaiya-chan, I told you never to do that!" I say," I know but we needed to finish him." He asks," What happened to you after you used your chakra?"

I say," I was unconscious so Shikamaru-kun and Asuma-sensei had to take turns carrying me back to Konoha. I was out of it for three days, then another until I could walk without crutches." He sighs and says," Kaiya-chan, what am I going to do with you?" I say," What can I say, I'm stubborn like you." He is silent for a minute then says," How many times have you been to the hospital while I've been gone?" I say," About seven times." He groans then says," Well, that's not too bad I guess." I say," The third time was because Neji and I fought each other." He says," Who won?" I say," Me, of course." I feel him chuckle and then he says," That's my girl."

I say," You seem happier than usual tonight, tochan." He says," Do I?" I say," Hai, you do." Sakura says," Kakashi-sensei, Naruto-kun and I are going to get some ramen. Would you like to come?" He says," No thanks, Sakura-chan. You two go on and have fun."

They leave and Kakashi says," Maybe I'm happy because I have a surprise for you." I say," A surprise?" He says," Hai. I'll walk you home while I explain." We get up and walk towards my house and away from the river. Kakashi says," While I was on the mission I realized I left something very important behind. I didn't understand how I felt until I didn't have them around me. I missed them worse than anything else. I wanted to come home and forget the mission but I knew I couldn't. I stayed and hoped that every day they'd stay safe. I waited and watched until finally we had the information Tsunade-sama needed. Naruto-kun and I came back after almost three years. I thought I might die from the wait until I could see them again. I missed everything while I was gone. I missed their laugh, their smile, their eyes, and them. While I was away from Konoha I realized that I loved someone. Not love like you would love a spouse but love like with a sibling or a child." We stop outside the door to my house and I turn to face him. I ask," So who is it?" He stops and looks at me for a moment. He tells me," Kaiya-chan, I'd like to adopt you. You would have to agree to have your first adoption annulled but it is your choice. You're like a daughter to me." I reply," Kakashi-sensei, I already think of you like a father. I agree." I laugh then say," What will the village think?" He says," Let them gossip, soon it'll be old news."

I say," You need to go check in with Tsunade-sama." He says," I know. I have to go. Goodnight, Kaiya-chan." I say," Goodnight tochan." He walks off towards the Hokage's office and I walk inside and tell Sakura everything then we both fall asleep.


	35. Chapter 35

The next morning I wake up to Sakura shaking me. I ask," What's happening?" She says," Kakashi-sensei just got us assigned our first mission back." I get up while saying," That's great." We get up and get ready then hurry to the Hokage's office. Kakashi isn't there so we head to the river. He isn't there either but we do find Naruto there. He tags along with us into town.

We stop at Kakashi's house last. Sakura knocks on the door and no one answers. Naruto opens the door and runs inside. I loudly whisper," Naruto-kun, get back here!" He says," Why? Scared Kakashi-sensei is gunna catch us?" Sakura and I tackle him to the hard floor and we all roll around fighting. Sakura punches Naruto and I pin back his arm.

Suddenly Sakura and I are off the ground and away from Naruto. We look up to see Kakashi holding us and smiling. He says," I see you two still haven't grown out of fighting." Sakura and I say," He started it." Naruto says," No I didn't they did." Sakura and I say," Hey! That's not true!" Kakashi laughs at us then says," You three are defiantly teenagers. That's one thing that hasn't changed."

Naruto and Kakashi hear a voice behind them say;" Did you really expect it to change?" They turn and Naruto says," Hey! How did you two…?" Sakura laughs then says," We've gotten sneakier too." Our doppelgangers disappear and Kakashi is empty handed and Naruto is still sitting on the floor. He says," And so have I."

I feel someone pick me up and see Sakura is being picked up too. Kakashi says," You still have things to learn." His doppelganger in front of Naruto disappears and he lets us down. I say," And you could learn to lock your front door." He chuckles then says," I was only gone for a few minutes, and then you three barge in here." I say," We didn't 'barge' in here." He says," No you're right. Roll, would be a better description for it."

Naruto stands up and says," Ouch, I think you dislocated my shoulder Naoko-chan." I say," Sorry, I thought I heard something pop. Here let me fix it." I walk over to him and carefully take his arm and shoulder then pull. I hear it pop back in place and Naruto gasp. He says," I thought you said you trained with Tsunade-sama for a while?" I say," I did, but we only covered muscles and some of the bones, not the shoulder joint."

Sakura laughs then checks my work for me. After this we all go get ramen and talk about the new mission. We all sit down around the table together then order. Sakura says," So what is this new mission about?" We all look at Kakashi and he says," Well, the Hokage believes there is an imposter from the Land of Mist working undercover at the hospital. Tsunade-sama thinks that they might be trying to discover some of our Shinobi secrets by claiming to be a medic-nin."

Naruto says," So she wants us to spy on the hospital staff for her?" Kakashi says," That's basically it." I say," But we'll have to be undercover too, right?" He says," Once again, you're correct Kaiya-chan. Sakura-chan will be helping at the hospital while Naruto-kun and Kaiya-chan will be patients." I say," And what about you?" He smiles and says," I will just be a visitor." Naruto says," Wait a second, we won't be getting needles stuck in us since we're undercover, right?" Kakashi's grin is wiped off his face and he says," Umm, well. I can't make any promises, but I wouldn't see why you two should have to deal with needles."

He looks at me and I close my eyes. I still hate needles but I'm almost the same rank as Kakashi. I can deal with them if I have to. Sakura asks," When do we start?" Kakashi says," Sakura-chan you will start in three hours. You will go to Tsunade-sama and she'll tell you what to do from there. For Naruto-kun and Kaiya-chan, tomorrow afternoon, you two will want to pack a bag too." I ask," Why?" He says," This mission could take a while."

We talk for awhile longer than each of us heads off. Sakura goes home for a little while then leaves to find Tsunade. I stop at a few shops in town then start home. I run into Kakashi on the way and we start talking. I ask," Which one of us will you be visiting?" He says," Both you and Naruto-kun at the hospital then I'll talk with Sakura-chan after her shifts." I walk up to my front door then turn and say," Alright, well goodnight tochan." He says," Goodnight musume." and I go inside. I get ready for bed then lie down and soon fall asleep.


	36. Chapter 36

LAST CHAPTER! Thanks so much for reading!

I wake up and eat breakfast then pack a few clothes in a small bag. I grab a few other things then go find Naruto. I find him at his house digging through his closet. I laugh and say," Naruto-kun, what are you doing?" He says," I'm looking for my bag." I farther into the room and see a bag lying on the opposite side of the room. I walk over and pick it up then walk over to Naruto. I tap him on the shoulder and say," Is this the right bag?" He says," Hai! Where'd you find it? Oh never mind, I have to get ready." He throws things into the bag then he says," Alright, I'm ready." I say," Now, we have to go find Kakashi-sensei."

Naruto and I walk out onto the street and begin walking towards Kakashi's house. Naruto says," I wonder why he wants to see us first?" I already know why but obviously Naruto hasn't figured it out yet. I say," I guess we'll find out when we get there." He says," I guess so." We walk the rest of the way in silence.

We knock on Kakashi's door and he lets us inside. Naruto and I sit down at the table and Kakashi gets us drinks. Naruto drinks his entire drink in one gulp, but I wait to see if the drinks are laced. Kakashi and I watch Naruto. He says," That's really good Kakashi-sensei. What…what was…what was in it…?" Naruto slumps forward onto the table then his eyes close. Kakashi moves over to him with another cup and makes him drink it too.

I ask," What is this?" I pick up my cup and look at the liquid. He says," It's a poison." I look up at him warily and say," A poison? So you just killed Naruto-kun?" He says," Hai, it's a poison, but no I didn't kill Naruto-kun. The second cup is a small dose of the antidote." I set down the cup and ask," So why are you giving us this stuff?" He says," So you can be admitted to the hospital. Only some blood types are compatible with larger doses of the antidote. You two are, but the hospital won't know that so you will probably be there a long time."

I say," Aren't you supposed to tell them what blood type we are when you admit us?" He says," Hai, but there can always be a mix up." I say," So how long will this take?" He says," As soon as we know who the imposter is I'll clear up the confusion and you'll both get the rest of the antidote then." I say," And how long will we have to stay after that?" He says," Just overnight."

He pushes the cup towards me and says," Go ahead, you don't have to drink all of it." I take the cup and drink the poison then set down the cup and say," Why couldn't Tsunade-sama give us a simple mission for once." I lay down my head and pass out a few moments later. Kakashi gives me some of the antidote then takes Naruto and I to the hospital.

After he tells them the wrong blood types we get admitted to different rooms. That night I wake up to Kakashi sitting next to me. I say," I thought you'd be home?" He says," I'd rather stay here." I ask," So what were you doing while Naruto-kun and I were unconscious?" He says," I went to talk to Tsunade-sama." I ask," About what?" He says," About the adoption. She agreed to it. She even said that she'll take care of the annulment." I say," That's great Kakashi-sensei."

I smile and then say," When will this headache leave?" He says," I'm afraid that won't go away. It will fade after a few days but you'll be achy and have a headache the entire time." I say," Next time you're the one who's gunna be poisoned." He laughs then says," Go to sleep again. I'll be back tomorrow." I try to relax and soon fall asleep then Kakashi leaves discreetly through the window after checking on Naruto.

The next morning I wake up to a medic-nin leaving my room. I sit up and cringe at the pain. I swing my legs over the edge of the bed and stand up. I feel arms around my waist then I hear the door click closed. I hear Kakashi ask," What are you doing trying to get up?" He carefully sets me on the bed and I lie back down. He says," You shouldn't get up." I ask," But why?" He says," Because whenever you stand up the poison spreads faster and it's harder to treat with the medicine. Also, you get a less chance of surviving."

He puts a hand up to my forehead and says," You're running a fever too." I sigh then say," I thought I was supposed to run a fever. Isn't that one of the things the poison causes?" He says," No, but it can be a side affect from the medicine. Don't worry it just means it's working. Naruto-kun is probably doing the same thing." We talk for a while longer then he goes to check on Naruto then comes back.

He says," Naruto-kun is feeling just like you are." We talk for a little longer than he leaves to find Sakura and get lunch. When he returns he finds me with my arms crossed refusing to take another dose of something. Kakashi takes the syringe and tells the medic-nin," I'll give it to her." The medic-nin turns and walks out as Kakashi comes over beside me. He says," Why won't you take it?" I say," It'll knock me out again. I don't want to sleep anymore."

He sighs then I hear him humming. Oddly I feel extremely tired and fatigued. I realize Kakashi is using genjutsu but I don't bother to stop him. I can tell I'm about to doze off then I feel the needle prick the crease of my elbow. I can feel the anesthetics start moving through my blood stream. Kakashi's voice is far away when he says," I'll be back tomorrow, Kaiya-chan." His voice slips farther away and I can barely make out his footsteps. I fight to stay awake but the medicine and his genjutsu overpowers my will and I slip into blackness.

I wake up the next afternoon to another medic-nin walking out of my room. We have no privacy here. My vision gets clearer and I see Kakashi walk in after she leaves. He sits down beside me and says," We caught her Kaiya-chan. It's over." I say," You caught him?" He says," We caught _her_. It was actually one of the medic-nin assigned to you." He sees the look of panic reach my face and says," Don't worry. She did her job just as a real highly trained medic-nin would. She never once tried to hurt anyone; she was only here to gather information."

I relax then he says," Now your only job is to heal." I ask," How is Naruto-kun?" He says," Same as you are. He just got the first full dose of the medicine and so did you. You'll both get out of here about the same time." I say," Ok. Why did you use genjutsu last night? I didn't want to sleep." He says," Hai, but you needed to, besides you wouldn't have taken the medicine otherwise."

I say," What happens now?" He says," The antidote is in a larger dose this time so you'll have stronger side effects. You need painkillers, which…" I say," Which will knock me out." He says," Hai they will, but you have to take them, Kaiya-chan." I sigh then say," I know, can you stay tonight?" He smiles and says," I was planning on it, but now you need to sleep before that medicine starts working." He presses the button for a medic-nin and I grimace. I say," Please, no more needles." He says," Sorry, this is the last one though, I promise."

The medic-nin walks in with another shot. He pricks the crease of my elbow and I feel the drugs seep into my bloodstream. He leaves and Kakashi says," You don't seem sleepy." My eyelids droop and I fight to keep them open. He chuckles and says," Never mind." I keep fighting the medicine and he says," Just relax, Kaiya-chan. Let it work." I let my eyes close and sigh," Alright tochan." I can tell he smiles then hear him whisper faintly," I'll be right here." I hear him start humming again; only this time he's not using genjutsu. Before I can say something, I drift away into sleep.


End file.
